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[sxddekarios]

a certain kind of (arcane) hunger

fic summary: gale's practiced tongue strikes again! gale tries eating out tav to satisfy the orb.

4.4k words

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Tav sat at the lake with her head in her hands.

She had told Wyll and Astarion the night before to take the red pouch from the chest to trade in the Grove. They thought that red and purple were somehow the same thing, and the items had already been sold when Tav raced back … then berated them for not thinking to check the contents to make sure they were just selling extra potions.

Instead, they pawned off her stash of magical items. Full of rings, necklaces, weapons, and shields. All for Gale to absorb the magic from, so he’d never be overcome by his arcane hunger.

Tav knew she’d be able to start replenishing the stash once they found a new hoard of enemies to take out, but she knew they’d had to wait at least a few days.

Soft footsteps sounded behind Tav. She turned her head to take in the wizard before her. Clad in his purple robes, the orb stood out starkly on Gale’s chest. It looked angrier than usual.

Of course, Tav thought, it couldn’t have acted up last night when they still had over a dozen artifacts.

“Hello,” Gale smiled and waved at Tav, oblivious to the earlier fight between her, Wyll, and Astarion. “Mind if I join you?”

Tav smiled back at him. “Go ahead.” Her heart rate kicked up as he sat next to her, his leg brushing against her knee for a moment.

“I see your little friend is hungry,” Tav commented. She knew it was better to get the conversation over with now, so they could work out what to do.

“You have a keen eye,” Gale let out an embarrassed chuckle at their predicament. “It usually doesn’t creep up on me so suddenly, but it’s not too terrible yet. I can hold out for a little longer, if you need.”

Tav let out a deep sigh. “Well… I actually do kind of need that. The guys accidentally traded off our artifacts, so we’re out for now. I’ll get some as soon as we can, I promise. I’m sorry, Gale.”

She felt so disappointed in herself, wishing she had instructed Wyll to look in the damn bag. Or better yet, she could’ve gone herself. But her cramps had other plans for her.

“That’s alright,” Gale assured her. He moved his hand over to hers, both of them feeling a bit light-headed at the contact. “It’s not your fault.”

How did she end up with such a sweet companion?

Her thoughts were interrupted when Gale let out a pained grunt and squeezed her hand. Tav turned her body to face him and ask if he’s okay.

“Yeah,” he replied. The hoarseness in his voice said otherwise. As did the orb glowing a dark purple in his chest.

“Gale…” Tav started, trying to figure out what to do. He needed something to consume tonight. There’s no way he would be okay through the night with the orb’s demands increasing so rapidly.

“You were right.”

Gale and Tav snapped around, startled at the voice that joined them. They noticed Withers had come upon them*. Keeping up with his creepy air of omnipotence*, Tav thought.

Withers cleared his (seemingly nonexistent) throat. “About the nature of your affliction, Tav. Do with that what you will.” And with that, Withers was walking back towards the camp.

Gale was the first to voice their confusion. “Um, do you know what he’s talking about?”

Tav looked at him, eyebrows still furrowed. “No. Well, I don’t think so. I might. But … I don’t know how he would know about that. Or why he wouldn’t explain anything. But it could be about something totally different, and I’d look like a fool bringing up the only thing I can think of.”

“If there’s only one thing you can think of, then I’m sure that’s it,” Gale answered. “Plus, Withers is always cryptic. While I agree that it’s unfair of him to leave you in the dark about this, it’s not out of character for him.” He hoped his words could comfort her.

He continued, “If it is something different, then at least you’ll know if you … ask, or try, or whatever it is you think you need to do. How bad could it be if you’re wrong?” Gale meant the question practically — he didn’t want to mock her, but he wanted to help her weigh her options.

Tav scoffed at his question. It could be catastrophically embarrassing, she thought. Who knows if Gale would ever see her the same, or even want to be her companion, if she suggested such a ludicrous idea.

She settled on an answer. “Mostly devastating embarrassment on my end, and an undue amount of discomfort on both of us.” Tav laughed a bit at the thought, grateful for humor distracting her from anxiety.

Gale raised his eyebrows at her. “Us as in — you and I?” He didn’t understand how he’d be involved in this. He thought it was between her and Withers.

“Yes,” Tav sighed. “If it’s … the theory I’ve had … and the reason why he’d bring it up now, it definitely involves you.” Gods, and if it wasn’t? Even if it was true, it would be mortifying to see his reaction, his rejection. It was crazy, and she knew she wasn’t good enough for him.

Gale was just getting more confused as the conversation went on. Luckily, his opinion carried greater weight since the embarrassment Tav was afraid of was connected to him. He simply wouldn’t judge her, and then there’d be nothing to be embarrassed about.

“Well, I’m certainly not going to judge you. Would you like to go on?” He asked her.

“If I must,” Tav muttered. She knew Gale would pick up on her exasperation being due to the secret she was going to share, not because of him.

She shifted her body back to face the lake. “I … I may have been cursed. I’m not sure if it was before I was born or after, but,” Tav paused to gather her strength.

“Basically, I can’t have sex. Penetrative, at least. I have my own theories about who cursed me, and why, but I suppose that’s for me to bug Withers about later. Not that he’d answer. Anyways, this involves you since it’s a magical curse. Weave and all.” ”So,” Tav continued, “if you take your condition literally… Needing to feed on the Weave, then…” She waved her hand as if the motion explained the rest. He’d probably get it.

That can’t be what she means, Gale thought. But, what else could it mean? Or is this just wishful thinking?

He asked her, “Do you mean that if I ate you out, that would satisfy my orb?” Gale blushed as the words left his mouth, but he kept his gaze on Tav.

She responded by burying her face in her hands again. “It could. Though it’s a crazy idea, I know.”

Gale paused to consider the idea. “It’s not exactly crazy. I mean, the curse itself begs a myriad of questions, but the application of it now… It does make sense, seeing how the orb feeds off the Weave*.”* Gale mused. “How do you feel about trying that?”

Tav giggled at the absurdity of his question. “I feel like … like you should answer that question first.” There was no way she was going to tell him how badly she wanted him when he didn’t feel a thing towards her. Besides repulsion, maybe.

“Your answer is the more important one here!” Gale exclaimed. “No matter. I wouldn’t ask you if I wasn’t interested, Tav. I’ve had feelings for you for quite a while now, if you haven’t noticed. I’d be happy to try under normal circumstances — but I haven’t asked because I didn’t know if you felt the same, and I’ve avoided … intimacy since the instability of the orb. I don’t think it’d normally be safe, but if the intimacy itself can stabilize the orb, and Withers knows that, then I’m willing.” Far more than willing, he thought. Eager.

Tav’s head was rushing with conflicting thoughts at Gale’s confession. He had feelings for her? Why her? Would he be disappointed at the extent of their tryst? Of course he would — who wouldn’t? The best she could hope for was that he didn’t try to take it farther, like everyone else.

She looked into Gale’s eyes for confirmation of his feelings. She found the same warm glow that she fell in love with, along with an added dose of earnestness. It looked beautiful with the dark webbing under his eye.

“I hadn’t noticed,” Tav said softly. “I … also harbor feelings of my own. So, what do you say we run this crude idea past Old Man Withers?” Tav held out her hand for Gale as she rose to her knees.

Together they rose, and sought confirmation for a very practical tryst.

Hours later, Tav laid on her back in Gale’s tent.

Gale laid on his side next to her, stroking his fingers up and down her arm. They were trying to work out the logistics before they actually got to doing the deed.

“I don’t know if I have to orgasm for this to work,” Tav admitted. “I mean, I shouldn’t, right?”

Gale raised an eyebrow at her concern. Why is this a concern? Did she think he couldn’t make her orgasm? It had been a long time since his year in solitude, but he hasn’t lost all of his skills.

He mulled over her question nonetheless. “Thinking of the Weave as a physical thing, yes, I think you would have to orgasm. That’s probably how the Weave would be exchanged in that encounter. If it was just … emitting from you, I’d have noticed it by now.”

Tav groaned in frustration, raising her arms up to cover her eyes. Why must everything be so difficult for her?

She opened an eye to find Gale staring at her in confusion. “I’ve never….” she trailed off. “I don’t think I can.”

“Oh,” Gale responded immediately, taken aback by this. He’d never considered the possibility before.

“My stupid nerves can barely feel anything. It’s like trying to scratch an itch with a sphere.” Tav had never thought of that metaphor, but it fit perfectly.

Gale hummed in thought. If he thought in terms of the Weave, a sphere was smooth. What Tav needed was edges.

“What if I,” Gale muttered a new incantation he thought of and felt his fingers start to vibrate on her arm, “did this?”

Tav stared at the wizard in shock. Goosebumps were forming on her arms, and she thanked the stars for the man next to her.

“Then I think you’re about to have a very satisfied orb.”

Gale kissed his way down Tav’s body, moving the blanket on top of her when he wanted access to a new spot. Soon enough, he was laying on his stomach, gently sucking on her upper thighs.

He paused to grab a pillow to put under Tav’s hips. With a little wiggle, she was in perfect position for him. “Are you sure?” He asked her.

“Yes,” Tav breathed.

He pressed another kiss to her thigh. “We can stop at any point, alright? Just give me a little push.”

Tav smiled at his words. So, so sweet. “Okay,” she said softly. Her cheeks were flushed, but the darkness and blanket over her torso made her feel more secure.

Gale slowly moved his hands up her thighs until his thumbs reached her unclothed center. He kept his eyes on Tav’s as he lowered his head to press light kisses around her center. He was already hard.

Tav whimpered at the kisses, causing Gale to smile against her body. He grew closer to her core, kissing up from her opening until he finally reached her clit. Instead of kissing it though, he blew a warm breath on it.

“Gale,” Tav whimpered, clutching at his hair.

“Yes, Tav?” Gale asked with a smirk before blowing on her clit again.

Tav glared at the man between her legs. “You know what, you obstinate wizard.”

Gale chuckled at the rise he was getting out of her. He leaned in and pressed a soft kiss to her clit. All the while keeping his eyes on her, of course. “This?” He asked cheekily.

“Mhm hmm,” was all Tav could get out.

Gale’s kisses grew more open-mouthed every time, until his bottom lip came under her clit and he gave it a gentle, tugging suck. He fought another smile as he heard her whimper again. Though it was dark in the tent, he knew her cheeks were gorgeously flushed.

His tongue finally darted out to meet her clit, slowly licking from bottom to top. Tav bucked her hips into his mouth, causing him to become even more intoxicated by her sweet scent.

He continued to devour her pussy. His tongue traced up and down her clit, swirled in circles, and darted out in flicking motions as he sucked on the small nub. He pulled away for a second to mutter the incantation again, causing his tongue to flicker to life.

As soon as Gale’s tongue returned to Tav’s clit, she muffled a cry.

“Is this alright?” Gale pulled away to ask. Luckily, the Weave seemed to know what the purpose of this magic was, as the vibrations paused while he spoke.

“Yes,” Tav said in between deep breaths. “It’s good.”

“Good,” Gale grinned. “Now just lay back and relax.”

Tav rested her head against the pillows, moaning softly while Gale tongued at her clit. The vibrations were steadily getting stronger. She marveled at how she could actually feel, and how good it felt.

Gale dipped his tongue down to her opening to taste the small trickle of wetness gathering there, groaning as he took her in. He gently moved his tongue around the outside of her entrance, massaging the tight muscles.

Regretfully pulling away again, he asked if she wanted anything inside of her. “I know you said penetrative sex is a no, but I wasn’t sure if it’s just cocks or … anything,” he stammered the last part out.

Tav took a moment before answering. “I can take a tongue, or a finger. Just that though. It’ll be tender, but if it’s gentle and slow and oiled… It should be good. Anything more, even two fingers, hurts like hell.” It felt odd admitting this, but in such a vulnerable position, she felt it wasn’t too out of place.

“Okay,” Gale pressed a kiss to her clit, causing her to shudder in pleasure. “I promise you I won’t put anything more inside of you. I never want to hurt you.” He lapped at her. “Do you want to try my tongue inside of you? Just to see how it feels?”

“Sure,” Tav agreed. She trusted him to stop if she said it hurt too much. Anything more than a 4 on the scale, she reminded herself.

Gale began to gently but firmly press his tongue against her opening, coaxing the muscles to relax a bit. He brought his thumb to his mouth, sucked on it, then brought it up to her clit, stroking circles while it intuitively started to vibrate.

Then, he started to press his tongue into her. It was a slow process given how tight she was, how firmly her muscles pressed back against his tongue. Her hands didn’t tighten into fists in his hair though, so he carried on.

His cock twitched in his trousers at the taste enveloping him now. It was wonderful; he never wanted to leave this place between her thighs. He moved his tongue in gentle strokes, as if he was licking her walls, all the while focusing his thumb on her clit.

He was lost in his own pleasure between Tav’s sweet whimpers and the taste of her pussy. He eventually slowly pulled his tongue out, but kept up with his thumb’s mission. “How was that?”

“Good,” Tav responded. “It didn’t hurt too much. Your thumb, though. Fuck, that’s good.”

Gale and his cock perked up at her praise. He wished it didn’t hurt at all, but he was glad it still felt good. “Do you mind if I replace my thumb with my tongue now?” He was eager to taste her again. It can’t have even been two minutes, but he missed it dearly.

“As long as you…” Tav trailed off, unsure of how she was going to work “finger me” into her quip. She definitely had an idea. But it had gone under the thought-numbing pleasure Gale was bringing her to. So it was his fault, really.

She decided to just ask for it. “Could you finger me? Gently?” The question was less embarrassing than she thought, probably due to the genuine enjoyment Gale seemed to have settled between her thighs.

“Of course, sweetheart.” Gale brought his other hand to his mouth and sucked on his index finger. He really wanted it to be as smooth as possible, so he added an oiling spell. That should keep her slick, plus he could refresh it without removing his finger and hurting her.

His finger pressed against Tav’s entrance as his thumb continued to buzz up and down on her clit. “Can you take some deep breaths for me?” He asked, hoping it would help relax her.

“Okay.”

After five deep breaths, Gale began to push his finger into her. It felt like an even tighter fit this time, and he kept his gaze on her to gauge her pain level. “How is this?”

“Okay,” Tav repeated. “Thanks for going slow,” she added in appreciation.

He could see she was hurting, but the tension in her face lessened as his finger got deeper inside of her. Once he was mostly sheathed, he kept his finger still so she could breathe and adjust.

“Would you like to rate your pain 1-10?” Gale inquired in between her hitched breaths.

“Um, four. But it’s going down,” Tav responded. She hesitated before asking, “Do you think G-spots are real?”

“If G is for Gale, them I most certainly believe they are,” Gale joked. “But yes, I do. I can find yours, if you like. You feel tightest towards your entrance, so I assume that’s where most of the pain is? Because once that goes down a bit more, maybe to a two, I can crook my finger and begin my search. The base at your entrance should stay relatively stable.”

Tav smiled, thanking him for taking her seriously and thinking it out so well. She tried to stamp down her jealousy at the thought of him fingering other women, and a god, before he fucked them.

“I think I’m ready for you to move,” she whispered. Gale nodded in response, and she felt his finger crook inside of her.

He began brushing his finger against her walls, and she whined at the feeling of it. “Still okay,” she assured Gale. “But … isn’t it deeper?”

Gale shook his head. “Nope, it’s right around here.” He reconsidered. “Or, it usually is. I can go deeper though if you’d like?”

“Yes please,” Tav responded.

“Your wish is my command,” Gale said with a grin. He refreshed his lubrication spell before pushing his finger further into her pussy. He felt around, stroking against her walls until he heard an exquisite gasp.

“I think I found it,” Gale smirked.

Tav thought it looked more like a shit-eating grin, but she was in no state to argue. Well…. she could argue a little bit. “That,” she said between pants, “still means I’m right. It’s, ah, deeper.”

“Yes,” Gale chucked. “You are indeed correct, as usual. You are truly one of a kind, darling.” The orb and his cock pulsed in unison to remind him of the arcane goal here. Feeding. “Now, would my one of a kind darling like my tongue on her pussy while I finger her?”

Tav felt a rush of heat through her at Gale’s words. The mouth on him! She wasn’t surprised that he spoke so smoothly, so assured, but she was still surprised that she was lucky enough to be on the receiving end of this talent.

“Please,” Tav whimpered, her voice getting higher.

Gale smiled, excitement growing as he replaced his thumb with his mouth and resumed his feast. Gods, he thought, she tastes even better now. His finger on her g-spot caused more of her arousal to leak out, coating his tongue and filling his senses.

He groaned against her clit, causing Tav to buck her hips and moan. She began using her hands in his hair to guide him. Gale got even more turned on by this.

He continued lapping against her swollen clit until she pulled his head away. “Can you conjure a mage hand?” She asked, clearly embarrassed but too desperate to let it silence her.

“Of course, what would you like it to do?” He asked as he conjured a spectral hand, glowing a soft blue.

She lifted one of her hands out of his hair, flashing it in front of him. “Can it hold this hand up over my head?” It almost sounded like she was pleading.

“Sure,” Gale obliged, sending the hand to circle around her wrist and bring her hand to rest upon the top of the pillows supporting her head. Spectral fingers intertwined with Tav’s, adding a bit of pressure to pin her hand in place. Her other hand remained in Gale’s hair, scratching his scalp into a blissful oblivion.

“Like this?” Gale asked. Groaned, really.

“Yes,” Tav responded. “Thank you.” Her heart was hammering in her chest.

Gale smiled up at her. He marveled at her beauty, her vulnerability, her kindness, her gratitude, everything that made her her.

And her taste, he added, as he brought his mouth back to her pussy. He kissed her clit while tapping his tongue against her, one finger still stroking her g-spot, and mage hand pinning one wrist above her head.

Tav was a writhing mess, her pleasure evident through her sweet whimpers. She continued guiding him with her hand, so he was making short, light, vertical licks on her clit. Her grip in his hair tightened, which Gale took as a cue to ramp things up.

He started moving his finger faster, keeping still under the first knuckle, but rapidly stroking her g-spot. Almost tickling it, he thought. He matched this pace with his tongue, taking care to stay consistent to help her reach her orgasm. Her firstorgasm.

That’s it, he thought, just relax for me. Let me make you feel good.

He continued his ministrations, so caught up in her pleasure that he barely noticed his throbbing cock. Tav’s fingers tightened in Gale’s hair before she cried out as her body spasmed in waves of pleasure. Gale kept pleasing her with quick strokes from his buzzing finger and mouth through her orgasm, causing a warm fluid to squirt against his lips and pool in the palm of his hand.

He dutifully kept going until he felt Tav’s vaginal spasms begin to weaken around his finger. He stopped the vibrating, slowed his tongue, and pressed kisses to her clit, causing her to jump and whimper adorably.

“Are you alright?” He inquired softly as he slowly slipped his finger from her. He rose up on his knee, wincing at the creak, to get a better view of her. He noticed the mage hand that still held her wrist. He dismissed that, feeling a bit jealous that he wasn’t holding her hand.

As he brought his wet finger to his mouth to revel in her taste, her fluid ran down his wrist and forearm. He also noticed the orb. It was glowing, but an excited, light purple. He didn’t feel pain, he didn’t feel the arcane hunger that plagued him earlier. He felt completely satisfied. Save for the cock throbbing in his trousers, of course. It worked.

“Mhm,” Tav moaned. “That was … different.” Different was an understatement, but she didn’t know how to describe it. She was still aching though, and it was much less pleasant now.

Ever the gentleman, Gale was prepared to take care of her. “Can I get you anything? Do anything for you? Are you sore?”

“Yeah, actually.” Tav winced as she tried to sit up, so Gale gently pushed her back down.

“Rest,” he instructed. He grabbed a towel and began to dry off her thighs and pussy.

“I wish I had ice,” Tav lamented, knowing that was the only solace she’s ever had for her pain.

“Hmm,” Gale contemplated. “I could use an enchantment to make my hand cold and hold it against you. Do you think that would help?”

Tav gasped out an excited “yes!”. Gale chuckled in response, placing the towel off to the side and muttering a small glacies before pressing a cold hand to her center. Tav groaned immediately, seemingly in pleasure.

“Is this okay?” Gale asked.

Tav closed her eyes and nodded. She spread her legs a little to allow Gale better access, causing his cock to stir again. “This is great,” she said. “Thank you.”

“Of course, Tav.” Gale replied. “You deserve it. You deserve the best. I’m sorry about hurting you, though I’m glad I got to bring you pleasure.”

His words brought her back to reality — the whole reason that spurred her coming on his face. Her eyes snapped open and met Gale’s. “Did it work?”

“Yes,” he smiled, glancing down at the orb. “I’m all good now. No more arcane hunger for me.” He wished they discovered this earlier. He’d much rather eat her out than consume magical artifacts. How mundane. He hoped they’d be able to keep up this mutual agreement. He hoped they’d have more — a real romance, where he got to kiss and hold her.

“Good,” Tav replied before closing her eyes again. “Now get down here,” she tugged at the hand that wasn’t serving as her ice pack. He laughed and acquiesced, lying down and curling up to her.

“Can I kiss you?” Gale asked, bringing his free arm under her neck.

Tav smiled and nodded. Gale closed his eyes and brought his lips to hers. She quickly held up her hand to stop him. He opened his eyes to find her grimacing. He worried that he did something wrong — did she not really want to be with him? Did he move to fast? Did she not like kissing after oral?

“Actually,” Tav said, “Could you do something about …” She waved a hand at his mouth, “that first? I’m not fond of tasting myself.”

Gale laughed at the apologetic tone in her voice. “Sure. But for the record, I’m very fond of tasting you.”

[sxddekarios]

My man, there was no need for that finger swipe. Actually please keep doing it

[sxddekarios]

oh.

that's a shame.

i am.

[sxddekarios]

just wanted to share this with as much people as possible

Edit: for y'all asking, this is from Lorroakan's scene when confronting him with Aylin - I used the Ring of Metamorph mod to replace him with Gale

Edit 2: same scene but with Rolan >>Here<<

[sxddekarios]

[sxddekarios]

taste

aka, gale's practiced tongue. my first smut, which ended up being way longer than i expected. all for my wizard though. this is in the epilogue, pts 1 and 2 are posted but not necessary if you wanna skip to the smut :)

6.5k words

a03 link with tags

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Tav tried to focus on the friends around her while she fought against worries about Wyll and Karlach, who were in Avernus for gods know how long. After Astarion ran away from the group once his immunity to the sun disappeared, they managed to track him down and get him to join them at a cabin off the coast. The night cover there was enough to keep the vampire safe, and enough to bring the comfort that Tav and Gale longed for. Meanwhile, Shadowheart and Lae’zel had some closer indoor proximity to strengthen their budding bond. Halsin and Jaheria were also settled with the group for the week before returning to Last Light.

Gale lived up to his promise of being the perfect gentleman throughout their adventure, so Tav was hopeful it would stay like this now that they’re in the clear. Tonight, he had already cooked the group dinner and let Tav take her shower first. Now Tav could hear the water turn off, and she tried to make herself look more focused on the book in her lap than she was.

She loved reading just as much as Gale, but being in a comfy bed for the first time in months, and knowing that her gorgeous partner was about to come out a wet, glistening beauty from the shower, her trouble was understandable. She loved the way Gale’s wet hair framed his face, with soft strands coming undone from his half up-do.

Their bathroom door creaked open as Gale entered their bedroom. His eyes immediately went to Tav reading in bed, the sight warming his heart.

Her eyes immediately went to his bare chest that was on full display with some droplets of water slowly making their way down to the light dusting of hair between his hip bones. He had a towel hung low on his waist. From the orb on his chest to the smooth happy trail Tav saw, she feared she was drooling.

“Sorry,” Gale started, “I forgot to bring pants in there. I’ll just …” He trailed off as he noticed that Tav’s gaze hadn’t left his body. Smirking, he walked over to the bed and leaned down to kiss her forehead. That finally worked at getting her gaze to his eyes.

Gale smiled down at the beautiful woman before him. “How’s your book?” He asked.

Tav stared a moment longer before she remembered how to form words. “It’s … it’s good!”

“Good,” Gale replied with a small laugh. He ruffled her hair before walking over to the wardrobe to grab some trousers. Once he found a suitable pair — soft cerulean blue flannel that Tav said would look adorable on him — he headed back to the bathroom to get dressed.

Tav mourned the loss of a barely-covered Gale. At least now she’d be a bit less embarrassing in her conspicuous ogling of him. She so rarely saw him without a top on, but with a towel so low? And still wet from the shower? Gods, she needed to get it together before he came back in.

Once Gale returned in trousers and a dark grey sweatshirt, he walked back over to Tav and examined her book. “Looks like you’re on the same page as before, dear.”

She glared up at him for stating the obvious. “Well, dear, someone distracted me,” she said pointedly.

“Oh, really? Who would dare to do such a thing?” Gale kept up with his mock astonishment, “I think we shall have to punish them for that indiscretion.”

“And how would you like to be punished?” Tav asked him without skipping a beat. She applauded herself for her composure.

Gale slowly smiled, a rosy tint spreading across his cheeks. “I didn’t realize I was the one who distracted you. I’m sorry, sweetheart. Did I make too much noise coming in?”

Tav rolled her eyes at his teasing. “No, you were just wearing far less clothing than I expected. Technically, you weren’t wearing any clothing.”

“Again, my apologies. I certainly didn’t forget my trousers on purpose,” Gale replied. She couldn’t tell if he was being sarcastic or not, but she didn’t care. He was adorable, and he was here. They had safety, comfort, and privacy. Finally.

Tav scooted over on the bed so Gale could sit next to her. Once he settled in, she moved to his lap and embraced him. She snuggled into his warm chest, basking in the soft scent of patchouli and amber. “I missed you,” she whispered.

Gale held her tightly as he stroked his thumb in a small circle on her back. “While I was in the shower?” He asked playfully.

She made an “mhm” sound into his shoulder, which went straight to his cock. He tried to redirect her attention by combing his fingers through her hair before she felt anything under her. She miraculously never seemed to notice it when they slept together at camp, or maybe she just never said anything. Still, he thought to himself, she must’ve blushed orsomething*.*

“I missed you too, sweetheart,” Gale says as he leans back onto the headboard, supporting Tav against his chest. “You know, we can always bathe together and avoid this whole issue of being without each other.” He made the suggestion lightly — it was something he’d enjoy, but he knew that Tav wasn’t comfortable being naked around anyone. She may never be comfortable, but he hoped his words and actions could help alleviate her insecurities.

Tav laughed softly at the idea. “You wish.” She smiled into his chest and snuggled in closer. One of her hands wrapped around his neck found its way into his still-damp hair, causing Gale to let out a soft moan.

Fuck, Tav thought. So much for regaining my cool. She instinctively squirmed a bit in his lap, hoping he wouldn’t notice.

After a few moments of playing with his hair in silence, Tav pulled away to look at Gale. She moved her left hand to his waist over his sweater, and her right hand went to cup his face. “Gale…” she sighed, her longing evident.

Gale took in her deep gaze, full of emotion, and felt his heart surge. “Yes, my love?”

Tav stroked her thumb across his cheek. “I love you.”

Gale turned his head slightly to press a kiss to her thumb. “I love you too.”

Their lips met softly, the couple getting comfortable in each other’s embrace. Tav moved her lips against his, indicating that she wanted more. He had learned shortly after they reached Baldur’s Gate that she loathed kissing with tongue, but he found a way to lightly bite and suck at her bottom lip that turned her into a whimpering mess.

Gale nipped at her lip, causing her to shift her hips against him. At this rate, she was definitely going to feel his arousal. He ran his fingers through her hair, while using his other hand to rake his nails up and down her back.

Tav kept whimpering and wriggling her hips as they made out, reveling in the moans she could get out of Gale. One hand remained tangled in his hair, while she brought the other down to slip up under his sweater.

She marveled at the feeling of his taut stomach beneath her fingers. She slowly guided her hand down, running across the happy trail she’d yearned after for so long. She always found this fascination odd, as all other body hair freaked her out. But Gale wasn’t complaining.

Gale tried to keep his bottom half still as Tav touched him. He wanted her to explore of her own volition. Still, he kissed her with passion, letting her know that he was very much enjoying this.

Tav continued to run her hand across his muscles, driving them both wild. She let out a short gasp of surprise when her grinding caused her to discover Gale’s erection. Or at least, what she thought was his erection. Maybe it’s just his leg, she told herself. She’d never been good at discerning these things.

Sensing her pause, Gale pulled away from her soft lips. He figured she had finally felt him, and he didn’t want her to be uncomfortable. “Tav,” he breathed. “You can feel how hard I am, can’t you?”

Tav bit her lip and nodded in response.

“Okay. I’m sorry, sweetheart, I don’t want you to be uncomfortable. I need you to know that this doesn’t mean we have to do anything, okay? It just means I’m feeling good. You make me feel good,” Gale reassured her.

“I’m not uncomfortable, I was just a little confused,” she laughed. “I couldn’t totally tell. It’ll probably take me a while to be able to be certain when it’s that or … just your leg, or something. Every part of you is warm and hard, you know?”

Gale let out a deep laugh at her reasoning. “Alright. As long as you’re still feeling good, I’m good. If it bothers you or anything, we can always put a pillow there,” he offered earnestly. Astarion would scoff at his decency, but Gale was serious about making sure his love was completely comfortable.

“Hmm…” Tav pretended to think. “If you don’t mind, I’d rather feel you.” She shifted her hips forward to drive the message home. Gale sharply sucked in his breath, looking at her like she was going to be the death of him.

She’d never felt more powerful in her life. She could kill a hag, massacre a trio of evil gods, and defeat the Absolute, and yet it was the sounds Gale made that made her feel like a queen.

“Tav,” he moaned her name. She grinned in response.

Gale smiled and shook his head as he noticed her pure delight in unravelling him. He brought a hand to her waist, slipping it under the back of her sweater. “Is this okay?” He checked in with her softly.

“Yes,” she responded, sounding like she was biting back a moan. He ran his hand up her bare back, feeling goosebumps quickly form at the contact. Gale used this hand to gently guide her back to his chest so they could resume their kissing.

Eventually, when Tav pulled back for air, she noticed that it was dark outside. “Gods, how long have we been at this?”

Gale chuckled when he noticed too, realizing that it had to be an hour at the least. They were having too much fun exploring each others bodies. While keeping their clothes on, of course. He was pleasantly surprised by the amount of intimacy the act held.

”Apparently long enough that the stars grew tired of it,” he replied. “Although I couldn’t ever grow tired of this.”

Tav smiled back at him and said, “Me neither.” She stared at him with dark eyes full of adoration before letting out a dramatic sigh.

“What’s the matter?” Gale asked her.

She thought for a moment before responding. “Nothing, I just … I’m …” She leaned her head into his chest, pressing against him. He wrapped his arms around her.

Now covered by the safety of Gale’s embrace (and having her face hidden away), Tav continued. “I want more.”

Gale breathed deeply as he felt his heart rate begin to rise. “What do you want?” He asked softly, eager to give her whatever it was.

“I … I don’t know.” Tav did actually know, but she wasn’t just going to say it. She’d always had trouble verbalizing her feelings. It just felt wrong, like she was expecting too much, being a burden.

“Hm, would you like me to give you some ideas then?” Gale asked her. He knew if she said yes, he could finally get that delicious response out of her that he’d been craving since the last time they touched on this topic.

He grinned when he felt Tav nod against his chest. “Well, I could give you a massage. Or I could show you my practiced tongue,” his smirk was obvious in his tone. He knew that would easily send her over the edge.

Gale’s feeling was confirmed when Tav froze in his arms, followed by a soft, frustrated whimper. He went on, “There’s something else I wanted to show you, actually. Can you look at me?”

Tav pulled herself back to look into his adoring eyes. She was extremely flushed after his suggestion, and she had no idea what he was going to do now.

He motioned for her to hold her palm out to him. When she obliged, he traced his index finger over her palm. Tav couldn’t suppress a little moan of delight — he knew how sensitive her palms were. Gale smirked in response, telling her to keep his eyes on him.

Suddenly, Tav felt a buzzing sensation against her palm. “Holy shit,” she said as she realized what Gale was doing. “Fuck.”

She couldn’t form any more words — she was in shock that Gale created a reverberation spell, didn’t tell her about it until she said she wanted to do more, and now her pleasure was actually within reach.

“Does that feel good, sweetheart?”

She moaned in response. “Yes.”

Gale spoke softly, “Good.” He continued running his finger over her palm, watching her eyes fill with desire he’d never seen before. He felt pride and protectiveness wash over him, knowing this was the first time she’d ever felt like this. And here he was, getting to witness it. Getting to cause it.

“Do you still want more?”

Tav moaned another affirmative response.

This was Gale’s chance. “Can I go down on you?”

The earnest desire in his voice melted Tav’s heart. “Yes,” she said for the first time in her life, “please.”

Gale couldn’t believe how lucky he was to have this effect on her. How lucky he was to fill this desire for her. He smiled warmly at her.

”Okay,” he started to pace himself. “I know you have trouble verbalizing feelings, so there’s a few ways we can do this. I’ll ask before I do anything new. You can tell me to stop, you can use the Weave to draw our minds together so I know what you’re thinking, or you can give me a little tap. Any of those, and I’ll stop what I’m doing. I’ll also stop if you hesitate while answering a question. I’ll keep checking in you, unless you shove me back down so I can’t.” Gods, how he wanted that. “Does that sound good to you?”

Tav couldn’t believe how thoughtful and sweet he was. How he wanted to actually do this for her. “That sounds perfect, Gale.”

He smiled before leaning in to press a kiss to her lips, her nose, both of her cheeks, her forehead, and her neck. “Lie back,” he instructed her softly.

She followed his command, relaxing into the throne of pillows Gale arranged for her. She kept her knees up until Gale began to crawl on top of her.

He asked, “How’s this?”

“Good,” she replied. “You can come down.”

He slowly lowered himself until his body was pressing against hers. “Still good?”

She nodded, then raised her head up to kiss him. He met her lips in earnest, teasing her with his tongue. When he got to the nibbling that went straight to her clit, she hooked a leg around him. Gale moaned into her mouth as she pulled him into her, shamelessly rubbing her hips against him.

He had never seen her so comfortable with her pleasure, and it filled his heart with a surge of warmth. And his cock, if he was being honest. He began slowly grinding his hips against Tav, eliciting the most enticing whimper she’d let out yet.

“Fuck,” Gale said, “You feel so good. You sound so good.”

Tav giggled underneath him. “You,” she said between kisses, “too.”

Gale reached a hand down to caress the leg that wasn’t wrapped around him. “Can I take these off?” He motioned to her pants. “You can keep your sweater on, of course, if you like.”

Always centering her comfort. Tav nodded at him, and he sat back on his heels to help. She lifted her hips up and started to pull her pants down from her waist so he could take over at her thighs.

He reached for the fabric, then slowly pulled it off her as she shimmied out. He admired her bare legs as much as he could in the near-darkness, before he remembered to light a damn candle.

With a flick of his wrist and a muttered incantation, Gale lit the candles on either nightstand to give them some warm ambiance. Tav grinned at his adorable response. He really was her prince charming.

“Now, back to business.” Gale said seriously. He caressed her leg, marveling at how soft her skin was. He used one arm to brace himself as he leaned back over her. His other hand traveled up to her knee, and he looked at her for guidance.

“Higher, please,” Tav whispered. He obliged, running his fingertips up her bare thigh. She tilted her head back into the pillow, watching him savor it.

Gale moved his hand to her inner thigh, gently raking his nails against her smooth skin. “Fuck,” Tav let out. “’S good.”

Gale chuckled at her eloquence. “Good, my love. That’s all I want you to feel.”

He carried on playing with her thighs, alternating between hands, until she sighed again. He looked down at her with raised eyebrows, “Yes, my dear?”

She pouted in response, sticking out the bottom lip that he loved to tease. “More. Please?”

He smiled at her again. “Of course. What would you like?”

There goes that adorable pout again, he thought.

Tav spent a few moments cursing the gall Gale had to make her use her words. “I thought you wanted to show me your practiced tongue,” she finally settled on, praying she wouldn’t actually have to ask for it.

“Hm, I did say that. However, I’d like to hear you say it. I know it’s hard, and you can be as indirect as you’d like. I just want to know that’s what you want,” Gale responded. He hated to make her ask for it, but since it was the first time, he needed all the confirmation he could get.

Tav stared up at him for a few moments, preparing herself. Finally, she whispered, “I want you to use your mouth on me.”

Gale felt his cock twitch at her words, pre-cum leaking from the tip. He groaned, “As you wish, my lady,” before moving down to her legs once again. He settled at the end of the bed so he could work his way back up her beautiful legs.

He pressed soft kisses to her calves, flicked his tongue out on the side of her knee, and spent minutes kissing her thighs while she squirmed. He took a break to meet her eyes and ask, “Is this alright?”

“Mhm-hm,” she nodded. “You can - you can be a little rougher here. As in, you can bite my thighs a bit. I think I’d like that.”

The vulnerability Tav had just shared made Gale feel all sorts of warmth towards her. He smiled, nodded, and told her to tap his shoulder or his head if it was ever too much, or not enjoyable.

He started by gently sucking at her inner thigh. Then he used his teeth to nip at her skin like he did with her lips, and he felt her hips buck in response. Cock throbbing, he raised his eyes to meet hers as he continued sucking and biting on different spots, higher and higher, until he got closer to her warm center.

Moving his hand to the hem of her sweater, he asked, “May I?” Tav raised her eyebrow, making him realize that she thought he was referring to removing her top. “I mean, may I, touch your … center?” He cursed himself for not being able to find a better word that didn’t sound vulgar. “I won’t push your sweater up, just lift it enough so I can reach my destination. If you’d like, that is.”

Tav smiled softly at the man between her thighs. “I like. I mean, you may,” she giggled.

Gale chuckled and pressed a kiss to her inner thigh before carefully lifting up her hem and leaving it right where her underwear ….

Would be, if she were wearing any. He sweared at this unexpected full access to her.

Tav interrupted his thoughts with another innocent giggle. “Sorry, I forgot I wasn’t wearing underwear.”

Gale did not think she sounded sorry, but he was elated with this turn of events. He was lost in her scent, wanting so badly to taste her.

Gale returned his gaze up to Tav. “You’re beautiful. You’re perfect, my love.” He’s never meant anything more in his life.

Tav’s heart raced at the praise, and she smiled in return. “Thank you,” she said softly. She had never been called beautiful before.

He pressed another kiss to her thigh before focusing his attention where they both wanted it. His hands were on either side of him, thumbs drawing small circles in the crease between her inner thighs and her core. He took his time reaching her center, savoring the heady scent that had him harder than he’d ever been.

Gale kissed around her entrance before dipping his tongue into the mix. He noticed Tav’s silence and looked up at her.

“It’s okay,” she told him. “It just doesn’t feel like much yet.”

“You’re okay with me continuing this until we find something that feels like much?” Gale asked her, ready to stop at any moment if she didn’t want to continue.

Tav nodded. “Yes, please.”

He nodded, then returned to his mission. He alternated between kissing and licking in small spots around he vulva. Tav finally laced her hands in his hair and sighed in frustration.

Gale raised an eyebrow at her, enjoying teasing her.

“Please,” Tav begged. Please, please, please get to my clit, she thought.

“Please what?” He feigned innocence.

“You know what, mister practiced tongue.” Gods, he exasperated her.

Gale let out a laugh before obliging their desires. He pressed a soft kiss to her clit, causing her to shift her hips and tug lightly at his hair. He considered teasing her about this some more, but he knew she’d be rather unhappy if he took his mouth off of her at this moment. He would be, too. This first taste of her was more than he had dreamed of.

His kisses grew more open mouthed until he licked at her clit, tracing soft circles around her nub. Tav whimpered his name when he gently sucked on her clit and stroked his tongue over it at the same time.

She hooked a leg around his shoulder, resting her foot on his back. “Fuck,” she moaned. Then she opened her eyes again and looked at the devastatingly beautiful sight in front of her. Gale, with his hair a mess from her hands, eyes shining with love and lust, and mouth worshiping her clit.

And here she was, putting the weight of her whole leg on his back. “Is this okay? Am I hurting you?”

Gale didn’t want to pause his delectable feast, but he had to in order to answer her question. “This is perfect. You’re not hurting me, you’re wonderful. Is anything hurting for you?” He asked, remembering her pain. He knew she still had chronic pain without penetration, and it could be worsened by tightening pelvic muscles when she’s aroused. He’d have to keep an eye on that. Or a finger.

“No, it’s good. So good,” Tav replied.

Green light given, Gale returned to his ministrations. He traded tracing circles for a vertical motion, causing Tav to moan and tighten her leg around him. So that’s what she liked, he thought.

He licked and sucked at her clit until she was writhing beneath him, grinding against his face with every flick of his tongue. He was in heaven.

Gale slowly moved a finger closer to his jaw while continuing to lavish her. Again, he didn’t want to pause, but he needed to ask her something. Reluctantly, he pulled his mouth off of her.

Tav pouted at the loss of contact. Gale asked her, “Do you mind if I try something with my finger? Not going in anywhere, just going around your sensitive spots as I use my tongue on your clit.”

Anything to get you back there, she thought. She didn’t really know what sensitive spots he was referring to, but she didn’t care enough to further extend the loss of contact between her clit and his mouth. “Go ahead. I’ll give your hair a little tug if I want you to stop.”

Gale pressed a kiss to her clitoris, causing Tav to throw her head back. “Thank you, my love.”

He focused more on sucking at her nub, loving the sweet taste that filled his mouth. Plums, he thought. Of course she tastes like fucking plums.

He wanted her dripping down his chin. He brought his thumb to her labia as he swiped his tongue side to side on her clit, then his thumb went lower still.

My ass, Tav realized. The sensitive spot he meant was my ass. She thought it was odd, but it felt nice, so she didn’t stop him. As long as it stayed outside, it was surprisingly pleasant.

Gale traced soft lines with his thumb, bringing his other hand up to his hair. He untangled one of Tav’s hands so he could hold it, and she squeezed it so hard that he worried he hurt her.

“Are you in pain?” He paused to check in on her, eyes full of concern.

“No, no, it’s good. I just … Can you … can you do the thing?” Tav’s voice was full of uncertainty and embarrassment.

Gale was here to take care of her, though. He always would be. “It would be my pleasure,” he told her. He moved the hand that had been exploring her body up to the top of her pelvis so he could gently pull the hood of her clit back as he licked under it.

Tav squirmed against Gale, and then he did it. He did the thing.

Tav gasped as his tongue began vibrating against her clit. She had never, ever felt anything like this before. “Gale,” she moaned breathlessly, “that feels amazing.”

His cock twitched at her praise. He reveled in knowing that he made her feel this good. His tongue began moving in small circles again, before going up and down her clit. Tav squeezed his hand, nails digging into his scalp, as he pleasured her.

She imagined him speaking to her, telling her she’s a good girl, telling her to relax and let his tongue please her. Telling her how good she tasted. Maybe, she thought, next time he could conjure a mirror image to do that. The thought brought her more pleasure as she shivered.

Tav felt a tap on her thigh, bringing her out of her fantasy. Gale was looking up at her, want evident in his eyes. She thought she saw him shifting into the mattress, almost as if going down on her was so pleasurable for him that he needed to grind into something to release some pressure. Fuck, that was another fantasy of hers that may come to fruition.

He began tracing letters on her thigh as they gazed at each other. She noticed they were upside down so they’d face her. She felt him spell out M-O-R-E?

Tav nodded, trusting him to not be talking about penetration. She felt something in her chest shift at this realization that she could trust him with this.

Gale’s tongue suddenly got stronger, causing Tav to writhe in pleasure. He licked lines across her clit and sucked at it. Tav seemed a bit less of a mess when he did that, so he brought his tongue back to the bottom of her clit and tapped against it as he sucked. That got her going.

She was whimpering and grinding against him, lost in the pleasure she so whole-heartedly deserved. Gale silently thanked himself for remembering to cast a silencing spell on their room once they got to the cabin. Just in case.

Tav was back in her fantasy imagining Gale’s deep voice praising her as he fucked her with his tongue. It really was a shame that he couldn’t do both without another spell, but there was no way she was going to stop him now to ask for it. She’d lived 23 years without having an orgasm, and she was not going to delay it when it was finally within reach.

Suddenly Gale’s voice sounded a lot more real in her head. That’s it, he said. You’re doing so good. Tav’s eyes widened as she looked at Gale, realizing he was onto her fantasy and connecting their thoughts through the Weave. Just when she thought he couldn’t be more perfect.

Fuck, she thought, please don’t stop.

Gale’s rutting against the mattress was getting more and more frenzied as he licked at Tav’s clit, feeling the wetness against his beard as he praised her telepathically. He knew how much she loved his voice, and he knew how much she loved his praise. So of course when she went off in her own little world, he got the idea that this might elevate her pleasure, as well as giving her more comfort in such a vulnerable state.

At this rate, he was going to cum in his pants.

That’s really fucking hot, Tav thought.

Gale mentally cursed at himself when he realized he projected that thought into Tav’s head. Well, at least she was into it.He decided to lean into it and tell her more about how amazing this was for him, embarrassed as it made him feel.

I have never tasted anything so delectable in my life. I could eat you out for hours. You feel amazing with your legs wrapped around me, holding my hand, tugging at my hair. You’re doing so good for me, and you’re making my cock so hard. You have no idea how hard I’m trying not to cum in my pants at the taste of you, and the gorgeous little sounds you’re making. I love you, Tavlin.

She was getting so close to a plateau she had never reached before, but somehow she knew this must be it. Next time, we’re so using a mage hand to stroke your cock while you do this. I want to see you cum.

With that thought, Gale’s tongue lapping at her clit as she ground against it, and feeling the pleasure that Gale felt from tasting her and hearing her words, Tav felt her muscles seize as she rolled her head back and moaned in pleasure. Her back arched off the bed, her legs shook, all the while Gale kept his tongue buzzing on her with hard licks.

Gale felt his cock spurting warm cum in the confines of his trousers as he witnessed Tav’s first orgasm. Liquid splashed into his mouth, running down his face in generous, heady rivulets.

Did I just make her squirt? he thought.

As Tav came down from her orgasm, Gale slowed the movements of his tongue and stopped the vibration. He could feel her muscles contracting, and he pressed two fingers against her wet entrance to keep those muscles from tightening so much that they hurt her. Tav still had her eyes closed in bliss.

Gale took the moment to selfishly lap at her entrance, tasting her cum. And her squirt, because there was no other explanation for what soaked his beard and part of the mattress under her. He felt more cum leak from his cock at the thought. He didn’t even realize he was still hard, but it wasn’t surprising considering what just happened. The taste of plums from before was amplified, along with something else. Something lighter but more sensual, like a faint trace of cherry.

Tav’s grip finally loosened in Gale’s hair and on his hand, so he looked up to meet her eyes. She looked so beautiful, an ethereal wreck after cumming so hard on his face.

Her eyebrows furrowed as she began to notice how wet Gale’s face was.

“Sweetheart,” he started, sensing that she was going to be embarrassed. “You were amazing. You taste amazing. And I want you to know that I thoroughly enjoyed that, all of that, and it’s nothing to be embarrassed about, okay? It’s extremely arousing, especially as someone who gets off on pleasuring you. That was just another show of how good you felt, and fuck, it even made me cum again.”

Surprise took over Tav’s face. “You came? Twice?”

Gale blushed. “Yes. I … I’m still fighting embarrassment over that, but I know you like it,” he admitted.

Tav smiled for the first time after her orgasm, showing that she felt some comfort in their shared situation. “I do. A lot. And you’re not … grossed out? Or mad? At me? I mean, this is a mess.”

“It’s a mess I will happily clean up. With my tongue, in regards to you, and nothing a quick spell and sheet change won’t fix, in regards to the bed,” Gale assured her. He raised up onto his arms and started making his way back over Tav, wincing at the sticky feeling in his trousers. She giggled at that.

He rolled his eyes at her and scoffed at her delight. “You’re lucky you’re adorable.” He went in for a kiss, but Tav turned her head sharply and scrunched up her face.

“What’s wrong?” Tav felt guilty hearing the concern in Gale’s voice.

She told him, “Nothing, you just smell like me. I’m not a fan.” She kept her head to the side, trying hard not to breathe in her own scent. She had no idea how Gale could be into that, or if he just said it to be nice.

“Okay, clearly you actually don’t have a refined palate. I can assure you that nothing is sweeter to me.” Gale said, surprised that she was so disgusted by it. He leaned back onto his heels and did a cleansing spell on his face — namely his mouth and beard — so he could kiss his partner in peace. He was sad that he couldn’t savor her taste, but maybe he could look forward to tasting her again. And again, for the rest of their lives.

“Is this better?” Gale asked as he moved back over Tav slowly. She finally turned her head back to look at him, noticing that he looked considerably more dry.

“Mhm,” she hummed, waiting for him to come down and kiss her. Their lips met, and she was relieved that it was back to tasting like peppermint. She melted into his kiss, pressing her body up against his.

Tav pulled away to ask, “Did you do that charm on your pants too?”

“No,” Gale laughed, “That’s a good idea though.” He paused to perform the incantation again, glad that he felt dry and comfortable down there. He’d change his trousers later, but he wasn’t leaving Tav’s side right now. “How are you feeling?”

“Good, really good. Relaxed. Thank you,” she held his gaze as she said it.

“Of course, my love. I wanted that just as much as, if not more than, you.”

Tav grinned. “And you’re okay with … ending it there?” She was much less sure about this.

“I promise, sweetheart, I’m more than okay with that,” Gale pressed another kiss to her lips, then her flushed cheeks, then her nose, then her temple. “I love you just the way that you are, and I love being with you like this. You’re an amazing partner. You make me happier than I’ve ever been, and I want to be with you for the rest of our lives.”

This is it. “In fact,” Gale continued, “I’ve been thinking about returning to Waterdeep. I’d like you to return with me as a member of the Dekarios clan. If you want that too.” He had been waiting to be in the clear with the orb to ask this, and now that it was safe … he couldn’t hold it in any longer.

“Gale!” Tav exclaimed, eyes wide with shock. “Are you asking me to marry you?” Tears brimmed in her eyes at the implication.

Gale smiled at her. “Yes, I am. I would do it on one knee, but I don’t think it’d be fair to make you stand right now. You might be a bit shaky on your legs.” He smirked as arousal coursed through him at the memory that his mouth brought her that pleasure.

She raised an eyebrow at him, going for teasing despite the tears beginning to escape her eyes. “Do you have a ring?”

“Not yet,” Gale admitted. “There’s a jeweler I want to go to in Waterdeep. And I wanted to leave it open for you to pick out, if you’d like.”

“Okay,” Tav grinned at him. “Yes. I’ll marry you. On one condition — you’re going to do another official proposal with a ring somewhere nice. Not in a bed.”

Gale felt elated. “Deal,” he agreed. He kissed her slowly, passionately, tasting the salt of her tears of joy. He pulled away to pepper little kisses all over her face, causing her to giggle and press a hand to his chest so she could reach up and kiss his nose.

“I love you.”

The pair fell into joyous laughter at that — they both said it at the same time.

Once their laughing finally subsided, Tav made sure to tell him her plans before she forgot. “Next time, I want to see your cock. Just by the way, in case I get to embarrassed to say it later.” Her face was flaming at the admission now, but it was easier to say after what they just shared.

Gale felt his cock stirring again as his face heated, instantly aroused at her words. He swallowed and looked at her, making sure she wasn’t just teasing him. He’d be fine if she was, but he didn’t want to overstep if it was a joke. “Okay,” he said, trying to sound in control and mature, “we can do that.”

“Good,” Tav smiled at him. Then she wrinkled her nose. “Do you smell burning?”

He sniffed at the air. He smelt nothing besides the earlier evidence of her arousal and pleasure, but he knew her nose was supernatural.

“Guys!” They heard Astarion’s voice from the hall. “Can you come out here?”

“I think we broke the stove,” Shadowheart added helpfully.

Gale and Tav sighed in unison. It seems the end of their adventure was not the end of this group’s chaos. Tav swore she could hear humor in Astarion’s voice, like he knew what they were doing, and he wanted to tease them about it.

“Coming,” Gale called grumpily. For the third time this evening.

[sxddekarios]

in the way gods do

This is my alternate version of the act 2 romance scene with Gale. The orb is stable, you’ve confessed your love for each other (and finally kissed), and he says he wants to make love in the way that gods do… Tav isn’t sure they can, though.

3.1k words

tw: mentions of rape

also available on ao3

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“I want it to be perfect,” Gale remarks, referring to the impending love-making he wishes for. Now that they’ve finally admitted that they having feelings for each other, knowing that his demise may be near, it’s time to let themselves indulge in each other’s company.

“I ….I don’t exactly know if I can do that,” Tav forces out, looking down as her eyes begin to well up as she knew they would. She didn’t want to have this conversation and lose Gale as soon as she got him, but she couldn’t make herself lie to him and act like she wasn’t terrified, embarrassed, and filled with self-hatred.

Gale looks down at Tav with concern, taking her hands in his. He drew small circles with his thumb on her palm to comfort her.

“What do you mean?” he asks her. “You’re already perfect.” He grows more concerned as he notices the wetness of her eyes.

Tav shakily breathes, losing any hope of composure while trying to explain how she feels. How she … is. She frowns at their feet, heart breaking without speaking. She feels Gale’s finger tilting her chin up, not noticing that he moved one of his hands out of his grasp on her.

“Hey,” Gale croons, softly smiling while lifting Tav’s chin so she’ll look at him. He moves his hand over to her jaw, thumb in front of her ear, stroking her cheek gently. “Look at me, Tav. It’s okay, whatever it is. There’s *nothing* you can say that’ll make me love you any less. Just take some deep breaths for me, okay?”

Tav does her best to oblige her love’s wish as tears begin to stream down her face. Gale wipes a tear from her cheek before releasing both of his hands to embrace her.

“Come here,” he murmurs as he pulls Tav into his chest. She melts into the warmth, wishing she could just be normal. Wishing they could’ve jumped straight into bed instead of making him sit here with her crying over her situation.

One hand strokes her back as the other cradles her neck. “It’s okay,” he assured her with his chin resting on her head. “Just breathe.”

Gale continued to rub circles on her back until her breathing begins to calm down a bit. He can feel tears through his vest, though he has utterly no idea what has hurt Tav so much. How incompetent is he to not realize what he did wrong? All he can do is hold her tightly and reassure her.

Then he remembers he can also hydrate her. “Do you want a sip of water? I have some here,” he offers Tav.

She finally pulls away from his strong embrace, nodding her head without looking up. Gale leans over to grab the bottle of water next to their blanket, unscrewing the lid before handing it to Tav. He watches her lift the bottle and take a few slow slips. He murmurs, “good,” causing her to blush. Gale moves closer again, wrapping his arms around her waist and pressing a soft kiss to the side of her temple.

Keeping the bottle in hand, Tav steels herself to speak. “I…” she starts out, unsure of how she can put her feelings into words without upsetting him or breaking her own heart in self-loathing.

“I love you. But I can’t be a good partner. What you deserve. I can pretend but …. it just feels wrong. And I couldn’t lie to you, but I’d do it if you ask. I can’t…” her voice catches, and Gale lifts her chin to meet her gaze once again.

“It’s okay,” he tells her. His concern keeps mounting as he guides her to take a break to drink more water.

Tav leans into him, needing to savor this comfort as much as she could. “Something’s wrong with me. I’ve been like this since I was a kid … anything … going in me, is really painful. Like, accidentally casting fireball on yourself painful. Which means … sex is the worst pain imaginable to me. I know I can do it though, because it’s … happened before. The pain won’t kill me, I just … I’m not good about putting myself in that situation. And smiling through it.”

*It’s over*, she thought. *I said it. There’s nothing more I can do*.

She focuses on her breathing so she doesn’t start hyperventilating waiting for his response. She didn’t know what would hurt more, if he told her now they couldn’t be together, if he wanted her to pretend, or if he said it was okay, but changed his mind later. She’d heard it all before, and only the first option didn’t end with physical scars.

She noticed that Gale’s embrace has tightened significantly, and he finally interrupts her train of thoughts as his heart thumps loudly in his chest. So hard that he doesn’t hear Tav’s beating even faster.

“Sweetheart,” Gale breaths out while holding her closely, “I’m so sorry. You *never* should’ve been through such a thing, and I promise a horrible end will meet whoever did this to you. I could never hurt you.” He’s never meant anything more in his life.

“I promise you, Tavlin. I want you the way that you are. I will never, *ever* hurt you or pressure you in any way. You mean the world to me. I’ll spend as long as I need to showing you that I value you far more than some mortal activity, and we can have a beautiful relationship without ever doing that. I promise,” he reassured her, unbothered by the knowledge that this reassurance will need to be ongoing.

The pair swayed together, Tav still grasping the bottle between them for comfort. “Thank you,” she says in relief. “I don’t want to trauma dump on you, but it’s happened a lot, with different people and … the thing is, the pain was there before the trauma. That’s just how I am, how I’ve been as long as I can remember. It’s just … excruciating. I’ve been to doctors and they’ve just told me to relax. It just … doesn’t change anything. No one’s ever believed me, or respected me.” Hard as it was to finally verbalize it, Tav felt like a mountain was lifted off her chest.

She continues, ”I know I could relax with you more than anyone, but I know *myself*, I know my body, and I know it would still hurt like the Nine Hells. It’s … really hard for me to handle. Especially now, with all the fighting we have to do, I don’t think it’s safe for us as a group if I’m going through so much pain. The pain is always there — it’s just like any chronic issue, like back pain. It’s just a lot more debilitating if it’s,” she paused, searching for the right word, “aggravated. I’m sorry. I’m *so, so* sorry. You deserve so much better,” Tav sobs.

Gale pulls away from stroking her back just enough to bring her gaze up to him. “*Tav*. I can’t express to you how sorry I am for what you’ve been through, the pain that you deal with, and the fact that you feel it’s your fault, or a burden to others. To *me*. I love you, and I could not live with myself if I did anything that hurt you. I want to be with you as you are.”

Though he prefers to be delicate with his words, he realizes that a more blunt approach might help convey the message. “I swear to you, we don’t need to have sex to be together.”

Hope blooms in Tav’s chest, constricted by an overbearing blanket of sorrow and disbelief. “How?” she asks him earnestly. “Couples have sex. That’s what they’re supposed to do. And I’m supposed to provide that for you. How are you supposed to be happy, fulfilled, with a partner who can’t do that?” She wished it wasn’t true, but this is the argument she’s heard her whole life, from her friends, her classmates, the books she read, and even her lessons at the academy. “Have you ever been in a relationship without sex before?” Tav prays by some miracle he has, and he could happily do it again, but she knows fate would never be so kind to her.

Gale slides his hand up Tav’s waist, returning to cup her worried face. “Couples are supposed to make each other *happy*, but that doesn’t have to be sexual. You already make me so happy, so fulfilled, the way we are, and the way we have been as companions. The point of partnership is … more, but more in our own way. That means whatever we want it to mean, not what society tells us it means. It can mean holding each other like this, cuddling, kissing, reading together, whatever *we* want it to be. But it will not be anything that hurts you. I promise you.” Gale swears to her before continuing.

“And no, I’ve never been in a relationship without sex before. But that doesn’t mean I can’t start now. The reason why it’s been … a component, is because it’s good on both sides. It’s not your fault that it hurts, and it doesn’t make you lesser than anyone else, past or present. There is no one ‘better’ than you simply because their body works differently. You are the best person I could ever ask for,” Gale declares, his own eyes welling up. He’s never looked more sincere.

Tav wants to believe him so badly, but she knows she can’t expect this of him. How was she supposed to undo over 20 years of conditioning with one night of sweet words? Maybe he can say this now, but she can also remind him of how he thought before she told him — how ‘*normal*’ people think.

“You wanted to have sex tonight, didn’t you?” she asks. “That’s what you wanted to be perfect,” she states with a sad smile, not faulting him for expecting her to be normal, to jump into it and enjoy it. The Hells know most women would be happy to please the stunning man next to her.

Gale feels caught up in Tav’s words, but does his best to articulate reason. “You’re right,” he concedes, “that is what I wanted. I had never considered that sex could, or would, be something painful, something undesirable rather than pleasurable. I wanted to make love to you because I wanted to make you feel good. I *still* want to make you feel good, I just don’t want to do that through sex knowing that it hurts you.”

He had a lot of questions about what might still make her feel good — physically and mentally — but he put those aside for later. Her comfort and trust were most important.

He goes on, “But I’m so, so glad you told me, so don’t you *dare* think for a moment that you should’ve hid this. I would be a monster to hurt you, and I would never forgive myself. You deserve the world. Besides …” Gale trails off, unsure of if this is the right time to have this conversation. Objectively, it was abysmal timing, but it could also give Tav the laugh she needed right now.

“Besides?” Tav goads him, eyebrow raised.

Gale lets out a sigh. “Alright, This is for *clarity’s* sake. I don’t want to make you uncomfortable, so just know you don’t need to answer anything now. Or ever. But since you said … you said anything going inside of you is painful, right? So penetrative sex is off the table. Good riddance,” he chuckles, trying to lighten the mood. Tav smiles at his joke, making his heart swell.

“Is anything else painful? If it’s everything, I want you to know that everything’s off the table. I’m perfectly happy with that. *But*, if there’s anything I can do to make you feel good, I absolutely would love to do that.” As much as he had dreamed about pleasing her, he’d also be extremely content to have the non-sexual physical intimacy they both enjoyed, such as him holding her right now.

Tav smiled up at the man before her, wondering how she got so lucky. She feels light-headed at the implication, but reminds herself that there are complications to get through first. They probably won’t ever get to that, she thinks.

“First of all, it’s supposed to be mutual pleasure. And my jaw is awful, I’m sure you’ve heard the horrendous crack when I yawn. Sounds just like those creaky knees of yours. I can do a little with my mouth, but … not fully.” Her face reddened as her response grew more direct. She couldn’t imagine Gale using vulgar words like this, but she didn’t have his talent to make such vulgar acts sound flowery.

She carries on, “I’m really not trying to be selfish, but that’s actually dangerous. My jaw could lock and I would freak the absolute fuck out, and no one in camp knows how to fix that. I could … I could try my hands though. If you’re into that.” Tav felt like the offering was meager, but an offer nonetheless.

Gale can’t help but try, and fail, to suppress the laugh that escapes him at the last sentiment. “I have indeed witnessed the wicked crack of your yawn, and you can be assured that I will not risk turning you into a perpetually shocked caricature. Still, I’m *into* whatever *you’re* into. If you want to try anything, I’m happy to try. But if you don’t, there’s absolutely no pressure, and I’ll still be happy with you. I have two hands of my own, after all,” he smiled.

Giving his hands a shimmy for effect, he carried on. “On the subject of mutual pleasure: believe me when I say I would get pleasure from pleasuring you,” he tried to be as convincing as he could without revealing the many, many dreams he’d had on this subject with her.

Tav leans back to take a sip of the forgotten water before sliding her other hand up Gale’s strong arm. The corner of her mouth quirks up at the intake of breath she hears from him. “That sounds pretty perfect actually. Are you sure though? Even if you don’t want to hurt me… you could maybe sleep with some-”

“No,” Gale swiftly interrupts Tav before she can put that idea in her head. “I’m committed to you, and I don’t want anyone else. That’s not happening.”

Tav nods, surprised and elated at his firm response.

“Also, don’t think that I didn’t notice that you didn’t answer my question about your pleasure. Is this a conversation you’d like to have later?” Gale asked in earnest.

“It’s …. complicated,” Tav starts, realizing with a pout that she’s going to have to continue. “I feel like I could be pleasured but … nothing has ever been enough. It’s always felt like I needed … more.” Gods, this was going to get explicit. She knows he’s had sex, but she wondered if the wizard had ever talked so frankly about it before.

“A lot of people say oral is more, and I’m sure it is, but I still think I’d need some like … reverberation, of sorts? Like I need more precise pinpoints than a finger or a tongue could hit.” She must look like a tomato with the blush flaming her face.

Tav leans into Gale’s side as she goes on, refusing to meet his eyes before she loses her nerve. “It’s like how I don’t feel much if you run your fingers down my back, but it feels like heaven if you use your nails. Something like that, you know? My sensitivities are all weird. My chest don’t even feel anything. That’s another thing! At best I get freaked out with contact, at worst it hurts. Another thing I’m taking from you.”

Flipping the hand he’s kept on Tav’s back, Gale runs his fingernails lightly over her skin and tunic. Tav shivers in delight. She doesn’t notice his grin though, as she’s still too embarrassed to make eye contact.

“So, breasts are off the table. That’s fine. What I’m hearing though, is that you might enjoy me going down on you?” He hopes he’s not projecting onto her, but surely she hears the excitement in his voice at the thought. At least she was next to him rather than pressed to his front, or she’d definitely be able to feel his excitement.

He continues, ”And given the whole renowned wizard thing, I’m sure I could work out a way to get some vibration going on to make you come,” causing Tav to completely lose her ability to speak. His smile grows wider when he sees the result his mere words have had on her.

“Plus,” he carries on while watching her grip and un-grip the air as if it stole her breath from her. “Since you’re worried about my pleasure, we can use the Weave for that too. I know for a fact that one can experience the height of the pleasure with the touch of magic and nothing else,” Gale smiles.

Meanwhile, Tav tries to hide her gag at the mention of his past relationship. “That sounds … amazing, but I still don’t want to deprive you of anything. You did that with bitc— Mystra, right?” She tried to correct herself.

He’d likely heard her refer to his ex as Bitchstra to their companions, but now probably wasn’t the time to say it to him. “I’m sure it was great, but you deserve to be enjoyed in all your mortal glory too, and I don’t wanna take that -”

Gale shushes her with a finger to her lips. Tav goes cross-eyed trying to look at the offending digit.

“Don’t you dare say anything like that again. You, my dear, are not taking anything from me. Understood?” Gale asks in earnest as he holds her gaze. Tav swallows in response.

“Yes sir.” She murmurs it politely so he wouldn’t notice how much she wanted to bite his finger that was still touching her lips.

“Good,” Gale says. “It wouldn’t be … a copy of what’s past. We’ll make it our own, a mixture of flesh and magic, to explore *our* bond. Of course, all of this is contingent on what you want, on what you’re comfortable with. We don’t have to do anything, *ever*.”

Gale smirked, “But with your reaction to the suggestion of me using my tongue on you, I wager we may have that to look forward to. We can take it slowly, enjoying in the discussion and learning before anything, *if* anything, physical happens.”

Tav feels tears wetting her eyes again, but this time they’re from happiness. “You’re perfect,” she responds with wonder, causing Gale to meet her lips in a sweet kiss. “Do you … do you want to lay together tonight? Just hold each other, and talk?”

“Nothing would give me greater pleasure”, Gale beams, snuggling Tav in his arms.

[sxddekarios]

🐱💜🧙‍♂️

[sxddekarios]

a very wholesome magic lesson

i am back with a bg3 rebranding!! this is the first fic i've ever wrote, and it's my take on Gale's act 1 romance scene at the tiefling party. Him and Tav are both oblivious to the others' feelings. read on ao3 or here!

2.2k words (of fluff)

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“I think it’s best in my condition if I don’t get too excited,” Gale reminds himself.

“Well, who said anything about excitement? Surely you’re not *that* keen on a little magic trick. I’ve seen you do plenty of other magic.” Tav responds with her signature furrowed brows.

“It’s not … the magic, per-say. More what comes with it. Though perhaps I’ve had too much wine for this conversation.” Gale attempts to stop him self, as he usually does when he’s bitten off a bit too much to chew in the flirting department.

“For what conversation? I just want to learn some more magic. There’s no way I can go enjoy our celebration, and sleep, after this cliffhanger…” Tav trails off, trying to bait him into explaining without having to fish too directly (or embarrassingly) for it.

Gale raises an eyebrow at Tav, knowing that he’s never been able to turn down an ask of hers before. He got into this mess with the orb by being a pleaser, after all. “Have a glass of wine and I’ll see if I can handle making this much of an ass of myself” Gale sighs.

Tav grabs his glass of wine and takes a tentative sip. She makes a face, disgusted by the tartness. Luckily, she manages to swallow the offending liquid. “This is all you’re getting from me, I’m afraid. Unless you can magic this into something bearable, or you’re hiding some other vices somewhere in that tent of yours, you’re gonna have to deal with talking to a sober person right now.”

Gale looks at her in mock astonishment — “Have you no taste? Have you never drank wine before? This is a *delectable* indulgence that clearly you have not been educated on. Or, perhaps, you lack the sophistication that i’ve grown terribly used to in Waterdeep.”

Tav grimaces while preparing herself for her next attempt to shut Gale up …. at least telling him how he *should* shut up, that is. Letting out a deep breath, she grabs hold of Gale’s glass and chugs it. As much as she can anyways, which still takes an eternity too long to ensure she doesn’t choke. “It’s still horrendous. But we’re even now. Spill, before I do.”

Gale glances at the empty glass in disappointment, but holds onto it. He steels himself for his next words while keeping his eyes downward. “If you must know, I speak of … physical excitement. I can handle magic, but my heart may not be able to handle … more carnal conditions of the flesh. With the orb, I risk exploding with any activity, or *feeling*, that gets my heart beating too fast, my blood pressure too high,” Gale explains.

Tav raises an eyebrow in response. “Like, you’re gonna explode as in ….” she trails off again, hoping he’ll take the hint. She knows he must be referring to the catastrophic Netherese blast they had spoken of before, but she couldn’t help herself from teasing him about the double entendre.

The blush taking over Gale’s face and neck came on far too suddenly for him to blame it on the wine. “No! Gods no, not like that! The magic in the orb will destroy me and everything around me,” Gale exclaims. Much to his avail, Tav still doesn’t stop her line of questioning.

Crossing her arms, Tav decides to enjoy the flustered nature of a blushing, tipsy Gale. “Okay, but you’re still saying you’d explode …. literally …. because you’d explode …. sexually. You said you wanted to show me a *magic* trick, not fuck my brains out.”

She pauses for a second when he lets out an indignant gasp at her directness. “Unless I’m mistaken on what a magic trick is, in which case I think you should’ve lead with that,” Tav finished with a smirk, finally meeting his eyes. She can feel the exasperation exuding from the wizard, and she loves every second of it.

Gale has no choice but to shake his head in lack of a coherent response to Tav’s brazen words. “I suppose you’ve got me there. I can show you some magic, no nefarious subterfuge. And no explosions of any kind, mortal *or* magical,” he emphasized.

Tav worries at her lip for show. “You really won’t blow up, right? Or you’ll at least warn me if you feel too much … *excitement*, stirring? We can’t leave scratch an orphan.” She thinks of mentioning the chaos that Astarion would unleash without them to reel him in, but she didn’t want to darken the mood too much.

Gale smiles at her words and lets out a little laugh as he promises that they’ll be safe. He holds out his hand, palm up, for her to take. Tav takes a hard look at his fingers for a moment, trying to commit their beauty to memory, before gently laying her hand atop his and intertwining their fingers to be led farther out of the camp. Once they reach a more quiet spot a few minutes later, Gale stops, forfeiting her warm hand to turn to her.

“This will do. Now, I want to show you the true embrace of the Weave. It’s a full-body experience to wield the Weave and feel its support of your magic,” Gale says with a smile on his face and wonder in his eyes. Tav categorizes this as his professor face, imagining him introducing lessons to his students with this pure enthusiasm.

Nevertheless, she’s more comfortable bickering with Gale than sharing that heart-warming thought with him. “You know i’m a sorcerer, right? I’ve been using the Weave my whole life. Unlike *some* people,” she pointedly includes to rile up the wizard.

“Of course. You’ve received the gift through your ancestor’s carnal relations with some dragon, while ‘some’ of us have *worked* for it,” Gale smiled, letting her know that he was joining her sarcasm in jest. “Nonetheless, there’s a very different feeling to using the Weave that comes with the years of study a wizard has. *That* is what I wanted to show you. I know you can call on the Weave as second nature, and you do a wonderful job with it, but I want you to experience the pleasure of embracing the environment, carefully going over the incantation and hand gestures, and using this to manipulate the Weave to bring your spell into reality.”

Tav felt her heart rate sky rocket with Gale’s praise for her sorcery. She wondered if the feeling he spoke of was really common to all wizards, or if he had a deeper connection as Mystra’s former lover … or victim, if you ask her. Still, she tried to focus on the positive.

“Ah, so you took me here to teach me slow careful pleasure,” Tav teased. “Get on with it then,” she encouraged with a wave of her hand.

Gale laughed in response, a deep sound that flooded Tav’s head with a light feeling, and took over her lips with a full grin.

“As you wish,” Gale bowed his head towards Tav, and proceeded with his magic lesson.

—

After an hour of teaching Tav how to connect with the Weave in this almost spiritual manner, Gale smiled at her once again. “I know you’re genuinely a natural at magic, but you did a wonderful job with this. It’s hard for someone to harness this connection without the education of a wizard.”

Tav smiles back at Gale and considers herself. “Or, maybe you’re just a good teacher.” As sure of herself as she was in magic, she was more sure of Gale’s ability to educate others. From his admirable desire to help others to his enthusiasm for knowledge … to the voice, face, and *hands* that made it impossible to zone out on him. He didn’t need to know that last part, though.

Gale chuckles at her praise, a light blush spreading across his face. “That too. How are you feeling now?” He asks, hoping his little magic lesson has been half as joyful for her as it has been for him. He felt relaxed, renewed, grounded, and more connected to her than he had ever felt. Although, that last part may be because he’s still standing so close to her, holding her hand as he needed to guide her through the more intricate parts of spell casting.

Tav allows herself to stare into Gale’s glimmering brown eyes, feeling a psychic connection between them where her thoughts could become his without the need to be verbalized.

After a lifetime of men being upset at her, accusing her of expecting them to read her mind, here is a man who can simply do so. Of *course* it’s Gale. Tav feels her eyes well up as she revels in the intense hope, adoration, and yearning she feels for him. Gazing into Gale’s eyes, their hands still intertwined, she imagines what it would be like to press onto her tiptoes and softly kiss him.

Gale’s eyes widen with shock as the thought dances into his mind. “I - I didn’t think -” he stutters, “I wasn’t … expecting that. Not that it’s unwelcome — it was a most pleasant thought,” Gale adds in hopes that Tav doesn’t take his surprise as disinterest, or even disgust. “It just took me by surprise,” he reiterates.

Tav takes a moment to compose herself before exhaling a shaky “okay.” Then, she whips her head around as she smells bergamot wafting in from the distance. Gale follows her gaze until they both see Astarion stumbling into the clearing … closely connected to Shadowheart.

“Well, looks like we’ve got company,” Gale tries (and fails) to keep the annoyance out of his voice. “We might want to get back to camp before we have to witness whatever is going to happen here.”

Tav slowly turns back to gale, smiling as she notices his stony stare at the oblivious couple. “As long as we’re not able to hear them from camp…”

“Oh gods, I don’t even want to think of that,” Gale grimaced. “Why don’t we head back, and if we hear anything, you could come sleep in my tent?” He quickly adds,” I have a silencing ward. I’d cast one on them before we leave, but I’m afraid my concentration won’t last once I fall asleep, and I know how fitful your rest is.”

Astonishment, anger, and amusement fight for dominance over Tav. She conveys a mix of them with her slack-jawed expression. “You had a *silencing ward* on your tent this whole time? And you didn’t *tell me*?” She kept her outrage playful, although she was disappointed that he hadn’t shared this with her earlier.

“I’m sorry,” gale said in earnest as he took her hand and started leading her back towards camp. They left a wide berth for Astarion and Shadowheart to continue ripping each other’s clothes off.

“I started working on a ranged ward for your tent after I earned of your insomnia, but I never quite got it to stick. I didn’t want you to think I was coming onto you by offering a place in my tent to get some good rest. I don’t expect anything, and I could even sleep outside of it if you’re more comfortable with that.” He felt a bit less forward with the offer now that he knew she thought of kissing him — at least in that moment. Still, he never wanted her to feel pressure.

She gazed up at Gale as they reached their camp. “Really?” she asked, unsure if someone could genuinely be so kind. Last time she had an offer like that …. well, they lied about expecting nothing.

Gale squeezed Tav’s hand in reassurance as he took in the concern in her voice. “Of course. I’m sure our adventure would benefit from a well-rested leader… do you want my tent alone, or …” he trailed off, his bashfulness returning.

“No!” tav exclaimed. “I’m not taking your tent from you! We can share it, if you’re okay with that?” She hurries along in an attempt to be thoughtful and nonchalant at the same time, “whatever you want. Sleeping on opposite sides, together … I’m fine with either. Well, by together I mean … you know what I mean,” she shook her head as she tried to explain herself.

Then she remembered their little joke and smirked, “no undue *excitement* is what I mean.”

Gale returned her smirk with a laugh, “Right, always looking out for me. It’s lady’s choice though, and i’m happy with either as well. But I will say, I know you run warm. I also know that I can use a frost enchantment to keep you cool so long as we’re touching.” This was his masterful attempt at sweetening the deal without pressuring her by saying how much he longed to hold her in his arms … and damn him if it wasn’t going to work.

“Gods, you’ve really been holding out on me, haven’t you?” Tav admonished. “I’ll just, get some of my stuff, and then I’ll join you. I’ll bring my blanket so I hopefully won’t steal yours, but I make no promises.”

He smiled as he met her serious gaze at the threat of stealing his blanket. “Two is always better. I’ll see you when you’re ready,” Gale said softly, watching her head back to her tent. He silently thanked her for wanting another blanket, giving him a moment alone to bask in the excitement of a night with her. And calm down this excitement before she returns so he doesn’t scare her off.

[sxddekarios]

original //sxdlyrics

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//happiness//

his hair is a soft swirl of chocolate

his eyes — the abyss of my happiness

his top lip is a bright petal pink

and his bottom lip

yes, the one he always bites

paired together

they wake me up

every morning.

his skin — a golden ray of sunshine

covered in a meadow

of blue and purple bruises

right above his left hip

where his hands —

the ones that paint my body with gold —

rest.

and i’ll rest on his chest

his soft breaths hitting me

like a warm breeze

and every single thing about him

comes together

to form the most beautiful

piece of art

holding the only beautiful

place in my heart.

[sxddekarios]

blue hundreds // holy mattress money

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sideswipe // froy

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coffee’s for closers // fall out boy

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i am not a robot // marina and the diamonds

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somebody else // the 1975