#I need more gnoll content

[nerdallwritey]

Just to Ruin Me

Summary: “You don’t have to tell me any of this right now,” you said. “A lot has changed in the past few hours and there’s no rush in sharing these things with me. I know how hard it was to talk about your past the first time.” “It was necessary, though,” Astarion looked over at you, his expression determined. “You needed to know what we might be up against. And you might need to know this too.” “If you want to tell me, then I’m happy to listen, but please don’t force yourself for my sake.” Astarion released a puff of air from his nose. “You keep doing that.” “Doing what?” “Asking me what I want. Letting me choose.” OR The morning after you spend the night with Astarion, you learn another thing or two.

Pairing: Astarion x f!reader Rating: 18+ Word count: 12.5k CW: smut, reader is new to sex, piv sex, vaginal fingering, dry humping, mentions of Astarion's past trauma, blood drinking, mild angst, soft Astarion, porn with feelings, reader is an idiot (and a bard), so is Astarion (not a bard, just an idiot), the other companions are also idiots, but don't piss of Shadowheart Spoilers: Minor spoilers for Act 1 (in-game dialogue, plot points, etc.), as well as Astarion's plotline Also posted to: AO3 FAIR WARNING: This is PART 2 in my series, "Beauty and the Bard." Find Part 1 here. Find the masterlist here.

a/n: Thanks to everyone who read Part 1!!! Your kind comments and encouragement spurred me to write Part 2 and I hope it's a sequel that lives up to expectations!! I know the summary is a little angsty, but I promise there's more banter to be had. Everyone is still a goof, after all. Please enjoy :) (Thank you to @kermitwazowski for beta reading!) As a reminder, the last part ended with the following few lines: “For now, you were content to sleep under the stars in Astarion’s arms. It was the best sleep you’d ever had.”

Taglist: @a66-1 @khaleesiofthewolves @khywren @lollipopsandlandmines @minestrones

Okay, so maybe it wasn’t the best sleep you’d ever had.

Though you’d grown accustomed to roughing it in the last few weeks since the nautiloid crash, waking up in the forest was still a shock. It had its charms, sure, like the fresh air and the breeze blowing in off the mountains, but the appeal was starting to wane. Especially after one too many nights of having to take a dip in the frigid lake next to camp to rid yourself of gnoll blood. 

This morning however, you found yourself surrounded by blankets and pillows from your camp in the middle of a clearing surrounded by large pine trees, all of which had been thoughtfully arranged by the figure trancing beside you. Your own sleeping figure sighed comfortably, unbothered by the lack of a mattress or a hot bath, just a nice deep sleep-

Astarion whacked you in the face.

Your eyes shot open.

“OW?” You scrunched your nose and blinked a few times to get your bearings. 

It was still dark. The forest around you was painted a delicate shade of periwinkle. You’d hazard a guess that it was just a little before dawn. 

At some point in the night, you’d rolled onto your back, away from Astarion, who was now curled to your right, his back facing you. He must have just rolled over, explaining the harsh wake up from his forearm. You smiled softly and instinctively brought your hand to rub your forehead where he’d made the unfortunate contact. 

Blinking a little more, your eyes were beginning to adjust. From this angle, you had a clear line of sight to the large scar that overran a majority of his back. You squinted in the dark to try and get a clearer view of the terrible thing, but came up short due to the shadows of tree branches being cast from above. Still just a mandala of jagged lines and brutal curves. When you got your hands on Cazador, you’d…

No.

No, that wasn’t your fight. 

But you’d be gods damned if you wouldn’t be there for every bloody moment Astarion faced him, giving support however you could. Though you had to admit that it would be so gratifying to corner the bastard and cast a quick little Otto’s Irresistible Dance… Assuming you’d be strong enough to cast it by then… Gods, he’d look so fucking stupid just before Astarion plunged a knife through his heart-

Enough. Battle strategies and sick, twisted (but satisfying) revenge fantasies later. Right now you noticed that the shifting of the shadows on his back wasn’t from a breeze shaking the branches above you, but because Astarion himself was trembling. 

Your first instinct was to reach out and touch him, but you quickly retracted your hand. Based on the short whimpers he was letting out, it seemed like he was having a nightmare.

How was one supposed to wake someone from a nightmare again? With Astarion you’d have to be extra careful; you wouldn’t be surprised if he’d stowed a knife somewhere within these blankets that he might reach for in a surge of waking fear. 

That… would not be pleasant. 

You shifted to sit up and look around.

Ow.

A dull throbbing made itself known between your legs.

No, that was great. Spectacular, in fact. You’d have to stop and assess later.

Gingerly, you got onto your knees and peered around at your surroundings. Astarion had done a decent job of cleaning up the clearing to make room for this blanket nest, so there wasn’t a poking stick to be seen within reaching distance.

Not that you were going to poke him with a stick… but the thought had crossed your mind. You were still tired! You’d been fucked for the first time last night! There was a lot going on! 

You shook your head to clear the stupid overlapping thoughts and set to looking around for a wayward pillow. You spotted one in the far corner and made your way over to it carefully but with some haste to end Astarion’s unconscious suffering. 

You crawled back over to him. And then backed up a little. Just in case.

“Astarion,” you sang quietly. 

Astarion continued trembling, but you heard him inhale sharply. A good sign?

You raised your voice a little, but kept the same musical cadence. “Astaaaarioooon.”

Nothing.

Okay fine. 

“Sorry,” you said quietly, then threw the pillow at Astarion, hitting him squarely on the back of the head. You leaned forward to grab your own pillow as a protective shield as he gasped and shot up.

“What the hells? What’s happening?” Astarion rolled onto his back and frantically looked around until his eyes landed on you. 

You smiled sheepishly and waved at him lamely from behind your pillow. “Hi.”

Astarion narrowed his eyes, confused. He shook his head, then lifted a hand to the back of his head where the pillow had hit him. “What did you do?”

“You were having a nightmare.”

“Oh, I know what I was doing,” his tone was sarcastic. “What were you doing?”

You looked down at your lap, guilty. “I couldn’t remember how to wake someone up from a nightmare.”

“So you assaulted me?”

“I didn’t know if you had a knife!”

“Why would I have a knife? What is happening?!” He sat up fully and brought a hand to his forehead as if he were in pain. 

“Are you okay?”

“Thankfully, I’ll live,” he opened his eyes and looked at you, his hand still on his forehead. 

You huffed. “I meant with the nightmare.”

Astarion sighed and closed his eyes again. “It’s far too early to discuss this.” He tilted his head up towards the sky, which was getting brighter with every passing moment. A practiced smirk appeared on his face and he looked at you once more. “I’d much rather know if you’re okay, darling.”

You narrowed your eyes at him. 

“We had a lot of fun last night, didn’t we?”

“Seeing as how I’m always a lot of fun, I don’t understand why you’re posing this question.” You looked down your nose at him. 

He hung his head and sighed exasperatedly. “Will you simply allow me to work my charms on you?”

You tutted. “Is that what you were trying to do just now?”

“Attempting to, yes.” Astarion crossed his arms. “I’m usually irresistible.”

You snorted. “Okay,” you said, a small smile appearing on your face. “I’m going to ignore your lack of an answer about your nightmare and will elect to wait until you’re ready to tell me about it yourself.”

Astarion pursed his lips.

“But go ahead,” you rearranged your legs, wincing mildly as you moved to sit cross legged, “charm me.”

A look of worry flashed over Astarion’s face when he saw you wince, but the concern was quickly overtaken by an all too self-satisfied grin. “Feeling it this morning, are we?”

You rolled your eyes. “I knew you’d be happy about this.”

“Positively delighted, my sweet.” He leaned forward and kissed you gently, bringing a hand up to your cheek. You brought your own hand up to lay against his. He pulled away and appraised your face smugly. “I was completely enamored by your performance last night.” You were about to open your mouth to say something, but Astarion interrupted. “Don’t even think about mentioning that you’re a bard and that of course you’re good at performing, or something like that.”

You closed your mouth. You were going to say something like that. Instead you said, “You were pretty good yourself.”

He brought his hands up to make air quotes. “I’ve ‘ruined you,’ from what I recall.”

You groaned. “I just said that to make you cum.”

“Whatever you need to tell yourself, my dear.” His face was still smug, but he motioned for you to come closer. You scooted forward and he lifted you slightly to sit on his lap. 

He leaned up and kissed you deeply, his tongue swiping your bottom lip for entrance. You moaned in response and opened your mouth for him. Though the rest of his body was cold, his mouth was warm and inviting, and you leaned in further to try and get closer. You wrapped your arms around his neck and tilted your head slightly to get a better angle. You’d been mildly distracted last night; had he always smelled this good?

When Astarion pulled back suddenly, you couldn’t help the whine that escaped at the loss. He hummed in satisfaction, and his voice was low and seductive when he spoke.

“Every part of your perfect body whispers temptations-”

You giggled. “What?”

“Shush dear, I’m charming you.” He cleared his throat, “-it’s as if the gods made you just to ruin me.”

“So now I’ve ruined you?” You raised your eyebrows teasingly.

“Wait, no-”

You leaned your forehead onto his and laughed. “And that one usually works?”

He blew out a puff of air. “You’re an unusual one, I’ll give you that.” 

You shrugged, pleased with yourself.

“But yes,” Astarion continued, “I’ve made plenty of previous lovers swoon with that particular line.”

“Show me what else you’ve got, then,” you challenged.

Astarion tilted his head in thought. “Let’s see… I can’t use the ‘cried from your lips’ line because I used that one last night…” You scoffed joyfully, mockingly scandalized that he’d already used a line on you. He met your eye and smirked. “How about this one: When I’m with you, I feel practically alive, yet I crave only to die again, with you.”

The sultry tone of his voice did send a pang of want through your body, reminding you that you were only wearing Astarion’s shirt and nothing else. You shifted uncomfortably. 

“How romantic,” you said, trying to keep your voice nonchalant. “I didn’t think you liked dying the first time.”

Astarion narrowed his eyes, sensing your deflection and smirked, looking down at where you sat on his lap. He rolled his hips, which made you inhale sharply. “I see that one did do something for you,” he leaned forward and kissed your neck. 

You exhaled slowly, “I blame that stupid sexy voice of yours.”

Astarion growled against your throat and you shivered, bringing your hands up to his back. 

“Astarion,” you sighed and he hummed in response, licking over the twin wounds he’d left the night before. You sat up a little straighter. “Wait.”

He immediately pulled back and looked at you with concern. “What is it?”

“I just thought of something,” you said.

Astarion raised his eyebrows and nodded, wanting you to continue.

“Can I borrow your fangs?”

“My-?” His tongue instinctively flicked over his teeth.

“Because I want to leave a lasting impression on you,” you tilted your head at him to show off the marks he’d left on your throat. You shimmied your shoulders a little for good measure. 

“I’m leaving,” Astarion made to get up with you still on his lap and you laughed loudly.

“No! No! I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I wanted to try a dumb line on you, too!” You threw your arms around his neck and hid your face in his shoulder. You felt him kiss your hair.

“You’re lucky I don’t travel with you for your personality,” he joked. 

“I’d say ‘I’m a lot of fun’ again but I think you’d actually stop talking to me.” You pulled back to look at him.

“And you’d be right.” He kissed you chastely and then adjusted you on his lap. You winced a little again and he looked genuinely sympathetic. “I might have a way to ease the pain from last night,” he said. “Do you trust me?”

You smiled at him. “Yes.”

He smiled back. “Good.” He positioned your arms over his shoulders. “Hang on, my love.” You crossed your arms where they hung behind him and waited to see what he would do. 

Without warning, you felt one of his cold fingers slide through your folds. You hissed at the sensation and looked at Astarion. 

“Supposedly, massaging the area can help,” he was trying to sound knowledgeable, but the look in his eyes was one full of lust. Then he tutted, looking down. “You could be wetter, darling.” His thumb began to circle your clit.

Your eyes rolled back at the sensation, and you leaned forward again to rest your forehead on his shoulder. 

“Do you want my cock again, love? You took me so well last night, I was so proud of you,” he’d moved his mouth next to your ear and was speaking with the same sultry tone that he had a minute ago. You whimpered at his praise and rolled your hips to get his thumb to press you harder. Astarion let out a low groan. “That’s it, you’re getting so wet for me, you’re so good.”

After a few more tight circles, you practically sobbed when you felt him take his thumb away from your clit.

“Shh, shh, I know,” he cooed, “but we want you to feel better, remember?”

You let out a frustrated sound. “I already was feeling better.”

Astarion chuckled. “Trust me, would you? Impatient.” His tone was nothing but fond.

His other fingers began massaging the area around your entrance. You winced and bit your lip. 

“Are you okay?” he asked.

“Fine,” you confirmed. “I assume this will get better?”

“That’s the idea,” he kissed your ear and you nodded against his shoulder. 

You rolled your hips, attempting to get friction where you needed it. 

“Just a little longer,” Astarion said, moving his fingers gently around your cunt.

You hummed an acknowledgement and kept rolling your hips, trying to combat this weird form of edging that was happening. 

Finally, Astarion ceased his massaging and brought his thumb back to your clit. You let out a long shuddering breath and squeezed your eyes tight, adjusting your hips to roll against his thigh. 

“There you go, my love,” Astarion said, voice still in your ear. “I’ll make you cum for behaving so well.”

You whined loudly as his thumb picked up the pace. You began rolling your hips at an equally fast pace. “More,” you whined, willing your climax to approach faster.

“Not right now, darling. Let’s give you a break there, shall we?” Astarion used his free hand to pet your hair. 

“But you asked if I wanted your cock again,” you whined.

“And while I’m pleased to hear that you’d like it again, let’s relax and get you off like this for now, okay?” 

You groaned but nodded, squeezing your eyes shut again and focusing on the pleasure Astarion was currently providing. “Harder,” you instructed.

Astarion pressed down harder on your clit with his thumb. He swept his index and middle finger through your folds, coating them in your slick. He quickly swapped those fingers with his thumb, changing the sensation by swapping one finger for two and adding more of your arousal to the mix. 

You keened and gripped his bicep. “Harder!” You instructed again, desperate and approaching the edge. You could feel the coil in your stomach preparing to let go.

Astarion pushed again and brought his lips to your ear once more. 

“I just thought of something, precious thing,” he murmured.

You blinked at him, your eyes unfocused and half lidded.

“More of a question, really,” he clarified.

You squeezed your eyes tight, nodding. You were on the precipice of your orgasm and could feel it fastly approaching. You slammed your hips against Astarion’s thigh as he continued to rub your clit brutally. 

“Do you believe in love at first bite?” He leaned forward and kissed your throat, then began to suck a new mark into the flesh there. Contrary to his pun, he wouldn’t drink from you without your expressed permission first.

It did, however, send you crashing over the edge. You moaned loudly, Astarion’s name tumbling repeatedly out of your mouth. The vision behind your eyelids was white and you reached out blindly to grip Astarion’s shoulders. His lips detached themselves from your throat and found your own. His tongue was immediately in your mouth, swallowing your moans and shouts of his name.

When you came down, you disconnected from the kiss and opened your eyes, a lopsided grin on your face. 

“Thank you,” you said. “I do feel better.”

Astarion smirked. “I knew you would.” He brought his fingers, still coated in your essence, up to his mouth and sucked them clean. You watched, mesmerized by the way his cheeks hollowed and his eyes fluttered shut. He pulled them out with a lewd pop. “Delicious.”

You felt your face flush, embarrassed by his display, despite just cumming in his lap. 

“You shouldn’t feel embarrassed about this,” Astarion said, reading your expression immediately. “What you should feel embarrassed about is the fact that you came because I told a joke.”

“I did not!” You protested.

“You absolutely did,” Astarion said. “And it was a particularly bad one, too.” He clicked his tongue. “You must feel so ashamed.”

You groaned. “I came because you started kissing my neck!”

Astarion raised his eyebrows, clearly not believing you. “It’s okay, darling, no one here was under the impression that you aren’t incredibly lame.” He gave you a pitying look, then kissed your nose and you laughed. He pulled back and looked at you fondly, a dopey half smile on his face. Then he looked up at the sky.

The periwinkle you’d awoken to was now vibrant shades of orange and pink. 

“Are you okay if I move you?” Astarion asked.

“Um… sure?” You weren’t sure why he was asking, and helped to move yourself off of him. You did feel a bit less sore thanks to his help. 

He stood up and stretched his arms over his head, then bent to pick up a rag to wipe off his pants. 

“Sorry,” you said.

Astarion shook his head. “Comes with the territory.” You were about to make a joke but he held up a finger and gave you a warning look. “Don’t.”

You held up your hands innocently. 

He tossed you the rag after and then your pants and underthings.

“Clean up,” he instructed, “then get dressed.”

You furrowed your brows, your stomach dropping suddenly. He didn’t expect you to leave right now, did he? He hadn’t fucked you last night, then brought you more pleasure this morning, only for him to send you back to camp like it hadn’t happened, right?

Astarion snorted. He was watching you as he slipped on his shoes. “Relax, darling, I see that face. I just want to show you something.” He held out a hand to help you up.

“Okay,” you smiled, soothed by the pleasant look on his face. “Do you want your shirt back?” You made to lift it over your head.

“Keep it for now, dear,” Astarion said. “I rather like that on you, truthfully.” The collar was slipping off your shoulder as you pulled on your pants, and you made no move to adjust it, opting not to put your bra back on yet.

“Do you want to wear my shirt?” you teased.

“Tempting, but I fear I’d look better in it than you do.”

“Excellent point, don’t do that.” You adjusted the ruffles on Astarion’s shirt and felt a light breeze on your cleavage through the lacey opening at the collar. 

“Gods, you’re beautiful,” he said. You looked up and caught Astarion staring at your chest.

You laughed as he cleared his throat, then gestured deeper into the woods with his head. “This way.” He held out a tentative hand and you took it eagerly, bringing the back of his palm up to your face to leave a gentle kiss. Astarion squeezed your hand slightly at the contact, and began heading further into the forest, away from camp. A pleasant silence hung between the two of you and you rubbed your thumb absently along the back of his hand.

It wasn’t long before the trees started to thin and you heard the sound of rushing water somewhere close by. You emerged from the trees to find a cliff overlooking a ravine below. On the other side of the ravine was more forest, and beyond that, you could faintly see the Sea of Swords. The sun peeked out over the horizon, bright reddish orange in the distance. Its glow was a welcome sight and you found yourself in awe of the view.

Astarion let go of your hand and sat, dangling his feet over the edge of the cliff. You hesitantly stepped forward and sat beside him, opting instead to sit with one knee up, the other leg crossed beneath it. Astarion sat back on his arms. The sun reflected off his skin in the most beautiful golden and magenta hues. His hair, somehow still perfect despite your night together, was being jostled lightly by the breeze. He’d closed his eyes and tipped his head up, basking. You couldn’t help watching him as you rested your cheek on your bent knee. 

He didn’t open his eyes when he said, “I try to come out here every morning.” 

You sat in silence, continuing to watch him as you prepared to listen to whatever he’d say next. 

“After two hundred years in darkness, you forget how lovely the sunrise is,” he said. “I don’t ever want to miss another.”

“I can’t even begin to imagine what that must have been like,” you said softly. 

Astarion hummed in acknowledgment and opened his eyes. “I’d catch glimpses while lurking around the city for too long before dawn, hopping from shadow to shadow until I made it back to Cazador’s manor.” His eyes didn’t waver from the sun in the distance. “But there were moments where I’d catch a glimpse of it over the Chionthar.” His tone became sardonic. “The promise of a new day emerging! Something that I would never get to participate in.” He sighed. “I’d linger as long as I could in those moments.” 

You nodded, picturing a hopeful Astarion hiding behind buildings and in alleys, trying to get a fleeting look at a phenomenon that occurred every day, one that you took for granted. Your heart ached for him. 

He continued. “I never quite told you what Cazador made his spawn do for him.”

You tried to recall what Astarion had said to you before. Only that he’d been made to go out into the city and bring back “the most beautiful souls” he could find. Then Cazador would make him either drink from a disgusting dead rat, or abuse him for refusing. The thought made you visibly shudder. 

“I know that you had to bring people back to-” you lowered your voice, as if saying his name might summon him, “-Cazador, against your will. And that he’d kill them.” 

Astarion nodded his head once, remorsefully. “I never told you how we lured them.”

You could see pain etched into his features. You reached out a hand and placed it on his shoulder. He flinched a bit at the contact, but settled when he looked over at you.

“You don’t have to tell me any of this right now,” you said. “A lot has changed in the past few hours and there’s no rush in sharing these things with me. I know how hard it was to talk about your past the first time.”

“It was necessary, though,” Astarion looked over at you, his expression determined. “You needed to know what we might be up against. And you might need to know this too.”

“If you want to tell me, then I’m happy to listen, but please don’t force yourself for my sake.”

Astarion released a puff of air from his nose. “You keep doing that.”

“Doing what?”

“Asking me what I want. Letting me choose.” 

You cocked your head sympathetically. “And I take it two hundred years as a slave hasn’t really afforded you any choice.”

“Correct,” he sighed. “As a spawn, your vampiric master has complete control over your body and your actions. Even in moments where I wanted to defy or fight back, I was powerless to do anything.” 

Your heart jumped into your throat. You hadn’t realized that was how it worked. Having no control over yourself or your actions sounded like a complete nightmare and you were glad that you’d hopefully never have to experience it. Knowing that that had been Astarion’s entire existence for the past two centuries made you sick to your stomach. 

“I’m sorry,” you said, just as you’d said the last few times he’d shared glimpses of his past.

Astarion’s eyes were closed once again as he inhaled deeply, then exhaled. He continued to bask in the rising sun for a few silent moments and you watched as it slowly rose higher into the sky. 

“That nightmare I had,” he said, his voice coming out quiet, “I’ve had it before.”

Again, you said nothing and waited for him to continue.

“I actually had the same one the night you let me drink your blood for the first time.”

“Oh, please don’t tell me that drinking my blood was some sort of revenge plot against me for haunting your nightmares.”

Astarion smiled a little. “No, it wasn’t about you. It was about Cazador.”

“You know, I’m really starting to dislike this guy,” you said, knowing how difficult this was for him and trying to keep his mood up with another little joke. 

“You and me both,” he sounded tired. “In the dream, I’m in the forest. Cazador appears and recites the rules of being his vampire spawn.” He held up his hand and recounted them on his fingers: “‘First, thou shalt not drink the blood of thinking creatures. Second, thou shall obey me in all things. Third, thou shalt not leave my side, unless directed. Fourth, thou shalt know that thou art mine.’” 

You listened patiently as Astarion recited each rule almost mechanically. You scrunched your nose with each passing instruction and rolled your eyes dramatically when Astarion finished.

“What a prick.”

He smiled again. “With an archaic speech pattern.”

“I was going to mention his archaic speech pattern.”

The smile faded slowly as Astarion returned to his thoughts. “The dream ends with Cazador telling me I’m his forever. That I can never escape.” 

You let the words hang in the air for a moment. “And yet, here you are.”

“Here I am,” he said humorlessly. He laid down fully on his back, the sun high enough to bathe him completely in its glow. He rested his arms behind his head and angled himself to look at you. “I realized, if I could walk in the sun, what other vampiric laws could I break?”

You looked down at him, admiring the light glinting off his bare chest. “So you decided to test your theory on me? I’m touched.” You held a hand to your chest, pretending to be deeply moved.

“In all honesty, I thought you were the least likely to kill me if I got caught.” He smirked at you. “And it would seem I was right.”

“I wouldn’t have let any of the others kill you,” you said firmly.

Astarion chuckled. “How sweet. My brave little protector.” He reached over to pinch your cheek.

You swatted him away. “Hey, who saved your ass from a bugbear yesterday?”

He shrugged. “I would have been fine.”

You leaned forward and shoved him lightly, making him laugh and throw his arm forward as a shield. 

When his laughter died down, his face grew a touch more serious again. “When you so graciously assaulted me this morning, he’d just finished telling me rule number three; that I can’t leave him unless he tells me to.”

You thought for a moment. “Which begs the question,” Astarion looked over at you expectantly, “how did you end up out here? From what I recall, the sun was still out when the nautiloid reached the Gate. You didn’t have the tadpole yet, so how’d you escape?”

“I wouldn’t say it was much of an escape.” His eyes shifted up to the sky, his expression thoughtful. “I was looking for new victims for Cazador. It was dusk and I had just been given the order to go out and hunt. I was weaving through shadows, avoiding the setting sun, but there’s only so many places one can hide from a giant tentacle that won’t burn you to a crisp. One of the tentacles caught me when I attempted to flee down an alleyway. A complete accident.”

“If it helps, I tripped while running away.”

“Of course you did.” He sighed. “Figures it would take an alien invasion to finally free me from his clutches. Not some,” he waved his hands in the air, gesturing to nothing in particular, “heroic figure sent by the gods to save me and smite that horrible man down to somewhere further and more vile than the Nine Hells.” His hands fell ungracefully to his sides.

He wasn’t wrong. How could any god worth their salt claim to be holier than thou when such suffering was occuring right under their noses? And you were pretty sure, based on tales you’d heard of Mystra and Shar from Gale and Shadowheart, that the gods hadn’t planned for the nautiloids or the rise of the Absolute. Yet if it weren’t for any of that, Astarion would still be trapped in Baldur’s Gate and your adventure thus far would have looked very different.

“If I’d known, I would have done something,” you said, knowing it was more complicated than that, but still wanting to help somehow. 

“Darling, if I’d met you in Baldur’s Gate, I would not have hesitated to take you to Cazador.”

That hurt. 

You said as much. “Ouch.”

“Well,” he sounded angry, though he directed it up towards the sky and not at you, “I wouldn’t have had a choice! Sure, it would have been a little novel, given how inexperienced you are, but regardless, I would have handed you off to him as soon as I’d made you finish.”

Ah. So that was how he lured people. It made sense, now that you put the pieces together; Astarion was so experienced because he had to be. Of course unsuspecting victims would fall prey to the allure of an eternally beautiful vampire, especially the one laying next to you. Of course the promise of pleasure from someone that sexy would be the obvious thing to agree to. It was a wonder your paths had never crossed before the nautiloid. 

“Once,” Astarion broke the silence that had fallen between you, his tone distant, “in the first decade of my slavery, I found a darling boy who I couldn’t bear to bring back to him.” He finally looked over at you, his eyes full of sadness. “So I ran, instead of hurting that sweet man.”

You reached for his hand, then thought better of it. All his snide “don’t touch me’s” on the road now held a new, terrible weight.

“After Cazador caught me, the bastard sealed me, starving, inside a dusty tomb, all on my own, for an entire year. A year of silence”

A hand flew to your mouth. “Astarion…” you felt your eyes begin to prick with tears and did your best to will them away, fearing that they might make Astarion stop sharing.

He went on. “Months of scratching my hands raw, trying to carve my way out, more months of not moving at all. Months wishing only for death.” He took a deep breath, then blew it out shakily. “So no, I wouldn’t have hesitated, had we crossed paths.”

You opened and closed your mouth several times, attempting to find words that could possibly compose an appropriate response to the horrors you currently refused to picture. “I have no words,” is what you finally settled on, followed by an, “I’m sorry.”

“Nothing can make up for that,” he said quietly. “Not even Cazador’s death.” He paused. “Well, it would help a little, but the coward deserves a fate worse than death.”

“Can I hug you?” you blurted, unable to stop yourself.

Astarion blinked a few times, then sat up. “What?”

“I just… you’ve been through such hell and I want to hug you, but I don’t want to touch you without your permission.”

He looked you up and down and saw the sincerity evident on your face. “I… suppose.” He pulled his legs up from where they were still dangling above the ravine and turned to face you head on. 

“Thank you,” you said, still attempting to keep your tears at bay.

You leaned forward and weaved your arms beneath Astarion’s, hooking your arms up and placing your hands on his shoulder blades. You settled your face between his neck and shoulder and could feel that his arms were frozen rigidly in place in front of him. You took a shaky breath and stayed still, allowing Astarion to move at his own pace. 

His arms finally settled around you and he bent his head so his cheek rested against your hair. 

The two of you stayed like that for a while, relishing in the other’s closeness. You moved your hands back and forth across his back absently. When you caught yourself, you pulled back to look at him and asked, “Is it okay that I’m touching your back?”

Astarion chuckled softly. “Yes, my dear. It’s rather nice, actually.”

You smiled and nuzzled your nose into the crook of his neck. Seriously, did he always smell this good?

Despite the pleasant distraction, something was nagging at your thoughts.

“Can I ask you something?” you murmured into his skin.

Astarion sighed dramatically. “If it has anything to do with my fangs, I’ll rip your throat out.”

You snickered to yourself. “No, not another dumb joke, I promise.”

“Then by all means.”

You pulled back once more to look at him in the face. His eyes widened when he saw your nervous expression. You avoided holding his gaze, feeling a little small. 

“Do you… want to be with me?”

Astarion looked taken aback. “What?”

“I mean… well…” You were having trouble sorting through your thoughts. Who were you to make this moment about yourself when Astarion had just been so open with you? And why couldn’t you trust him in what he had told you last night? Still, you had to know. You’d made it clear how much you cared for him and how much sleeping with him had meant to you. 

Given his past experiences, it made sense why he’d sleep with you, but you wanted to hear him say it. If this was all some ploy to manipulate you into doing what he wanted, even without Cazador’s instruction, you needed to know now. 

“Was I… just another conquest?” you asked, your tears reemerging. “Because if that’s the case, then I think we should end whatever this is.”

Astarion’s face was now inches away from yours. He moved a hand from your back and shifted it up to wipe a wayward tear that had escaped. He said your name softly.

“No, my sweet,” his other hand started rubbing soothing circles into your back. He pulled back a little. “Well, yes.”

You scoffed, another tear rolling down your cheek. 

Astarion was quick to correct. “No, no! I mean, at first, yes, it was my plan to seduce you and sleep with you.”

You let out a small whimpering noise and he tried to catch your eye. You kept your gaze glued on something in the distance, unseeing.

Astarion cleared his throat. “You- You’re valuable; someone willing to feed me, someone who advocated for me to stay with you all, even though you knew vampires were dangerous, someone who would protect me in battle, even if it meant sacrificing something important to you.”

Try as he might to get your attention back on him, your face remained blank as you stared into the distance.

“I wanted your continued protection.” He shrugged. “Habits from two hundred years of charming people kicked in and I thought I could secure that with sex.”

That got you to look at him, a sour expression on your face. “Have you met me?”

Astarion chuckled. “Yes, I have. And that’s what threw me for such a loop.”

You humphed.

“When I realized you’d be more of a challenge, I modified my plan.”

“I don’t love the direction this is headed.”

“Stay with me, darling” he said, “I promise I’m going somewhere with this.”

You exhaled and nodded for him to continue. 

“I did want to give you a good first experience, that much was true, but I will admit that I was still planning on using you.”

You narrowed your eyes. “You realize how bad this sounds, right?”

“Will you-” he sighed. “Let me finish, damn you,” he brought his forehead to yours briefly, then pulled back. “So imagine how stupid I felt when I realized I genuinely felt something for you.”

That made you smile softly. 

He groaned. “And yes, it is because I find you to be… a lot of fun.” The last phrase sounded like it hurt coming out. 

Your soft smile transformed into one of smug satisfaction. “And when did you come to this conclusion?”

“Well first of all, look at you.” He smiled slyly and you playfully pushed his face away from yours, just as you had last night. After a moment, Astarion looked up, as if searching through his thoughts. “I suppose I’ve always found you to be amusing. You were so easy to fool in the beginning. I mean, the very first day we met, you thought I had one of those brain things cornered.”

“I had no reason not to believe you! And then you held a knife to my throat!” “Ah, memories,” he sighed wistfully. “But then we started traveling together, and I don’t think I’ve ever laughed more. Killing those goblins outside the Grove, fooling those trolls into working for us, taking out those Paladins of Tyr… you always had a sarcastic comment to contend with my sarcastic comments. Which is saying something.”

You snorted. “As if I wouldn’t have something to say.”

Astarion nodded. “You do talk a lot.” 

You chuckled softly, feeling better. Your arms were still wrapped around Astarion.

“It was when I kissed you.” His tone was thoughtful.

“Hmm?”

“When I really kissed you for the first time, there was something different about it.” His eyes flicked down to your lips momentarily. “Suddenly everything we’d been through came rushing back to my mind and there was this… pleasure I hadn’t felt. In an awfully long time.”

You smiled like a dope, bringing your forehead to his.

“I realized you weren’t going anywhere. And that you genuinely cared about what I thought and what I wanted.” He looked at you almost shyly. “No one in the past two hundred years has stayed.” Astarion pulled back and his inflection became flamboyant and playful: “Not that they had much of a choice, but it was a somewhat shocking revelation.” His tone then returned to one of sincerity: “And no one has cared for me as you have.”

You looked away, embarrassed by the kind words.“What can I say, I’m incredible.”

Astarion blew out a cool puff of air that tickled your face. “Annoyingly, you are.”

You looked back at him and smirked. “For me, it was when you asked me how I’d want to die.”

Astarion snorted. “Pardon?”

“When you asked me how I wanted to die on one of our first nights at camp. I genuinely had the thought, ‘Now here’s a guy who knows how to have a good time.’”

Astarion laughed brightly. You mirrored his grin.

“You said you wanted to be decapitated.” 

“How romantic of me,” he said, raising a seductive eyebrow. 

“Well it did spark the crush I’ve been harboring this whole time,” you felt your face heat up at the admission. “That, and your stupid beautiful face.”

Astarion sniffed mockingly. “Thank you, not enough people mention that.” Then he looked at you fondly. “But that long, eh? How adorable.” He rubbed his nose against yours teasingly. “And here you thought nothing would come of it.”

“Nothing usually does!” you exclaimed.

He laughed and leaned forward to kiss you once. “Not so loud.”

You lifted an eyebrow and gestured to the empty landscape around you. Astarion shrugged. You lowered your voice despite the lack of other people to bother.

“I am glad something came of it this time.” You settled your forehead onto his shoulder.

“As am I, my love,” he kissed your hair. “Though I have something else to admit.”

You pulled back and looked at him curiously.

Out of nowhere, he presented you with a knife.

“I did have a knife.”

You scoffed incredulously and whacked his arm. “I KNEW YOU HAD A KNIFE, YOU BASTARD!” You laughed loudly and pushed him backwards. 

He fell back onto his arms, laughing with you as you crawled on top and kissed him deeply. 

“Careful darling,” he murmured against your lips, “don’t move.”

You paused your movements, your lips still pressed firmly against his own. Astarion turned his head slightly to look over to his left at the treeline you’d emerged from not too long ago. You pressed a kiss to the side of his mouth and felt him grin. Then you felt his right arm come up and jerk slightly, followed by a “THUNK” sound off to your right. 

You waited a moment before you asked, “Can I move?” Your mouth was smushed against his face and your voice came out muffled.

He chuckled. “Yes, you can move now.” 

You sat up and looked to your right, the knife Astarion had pulled was now wedged deeply into the trunk of a nearby tree. You raised your eyebrows at him.

He stretched out like a cat in a sunbeam, his voice straining as he went. “Impressed?”

“Honestly? Yes.” You leaned back down and kissed him again. 

He hummed and his mouth moved against yours at a leisurely pace, his hands coming up to tangle in your hair. You kissed down his jaw and throat before coming to his collarbone and stopping.

“You’re sure you don’t want to fuck me again?” Your words came out a little shy and Astarion laughed. 

He twirled the ends of your hair around his finger. “Delicious as you were, my sweet, I think I’d prefer to take my time with you.” 

You pursed your lips, disappointed. 

“That’s not to say I don’t want to, darling, but…” His fingers stopped twirling your hair as he thought. “Like you said earlier, so much has changed in the last few hours. I’ve only just discovered that I can sleep with somebody because I actually want to.” His hand moved from your hair to your cheek. “I think I need some time to adjust to that.”

You nodded and bent to kiss him. “I’ll wait as long as you need me to.”

He smiled up at you. “Thank you.”

You spent a few moments just looking at him, admiring how his eyes sparkled in the sun like rubies. You sighed noticeably. 

“What is it, love?”

You shook your head. “It’s nothing.”

“Darling…” He raised his eyebrows at you. 

“No, it’s inappropriate right now.” You looked away.

You felt his hand in your hair, and his voice was conspiratory, “I love when you talk dirty.”

You sighed again and looked him in the eye. “One of these days, when you’re ready, I’m going to look into your gorgeous eyes as I make you come.”

Astarion sputtered out a surprised laugh. “Easy there, lover,” he gave you a sultry look, “I may just take you up on that.”

You sat up and spread your hands over his chest. “I want to make you feel good, too.”

He brought both hands up to his face and groaned loudly before dragging them back down his face and looking at you. “Come lay in the sun with me, will you?”

You pouted but rolled off of him and curled into his side. 

“There now,” he said, arching his chest upwards towards the sky where the sun had now risen for the day, “isn’t this nice?”

You inhaled deeply, taking in the scent of the trees and the sounds of the ravine below. You exhaled and closed your eyes, warmed by the sun and comforted by the presence of Astarion beside you. He himself had his eyes closed and looked peacefully content. You nuzzled further into his side, enjoying how his cool skin contrasted with the warmth coming from above.

Before you could even register that you were still tired from your early wakeup call this morning, you’d drifted back into a comfortable sleep.

~~~~~

You were awoken some time later by a lick to the face. 

You shut your eyes tighter and groaned. “Gross, Astarion, I’m trying to sleep.” You threw an arm over your eyes, the sun now directly overhead. 

“Did you find them, boy?” A voice shouted from the distance.

Your eyes shot open and found Scratch panting above you, wagging his tail excitedly. 

You sat up quickly and immediately leaned over to shake Astarion who appeared to be trancing soundly. 

“Astarion,” you shook him anxiously. 

He scowled, his eyes still closed. He groaned lowly.

“Astarion, my dear, my sweet, my beloved,” you shook him harder and his eyes opened immediately. He sat up, fast as lightning.

“What’s happening? Where’s my knife?” He looked around frantically until his eyes landed on you. “Ah,” he said, calming, “déjà vu.” 

“They’re coming,” you hissed.

“Who?” Astarion narrowed his eyes, thoughts still foggy from his trance. 

“No FUCKING way!” Came Karlach’s voice from the treeline. 

You looked over and found her with an elated grin on her face and her hands on her knees. She started laughing loudly and you hid your face in your hands. 

“You guys did NOT,” she wheezed. 

“Hello Karlach,” Astarion’s voice sounded nonchalant beside you. “What brings you out to ruin our beauty sleep?” 

“Did you find them?” Shadowheart soon emerged from the forest and stopped in her tracks. She surveyed the area and pinched the bridge of her nose. “Astarion, tell me you didn’t.”

“Did what, darling?” He sounded smug and you looked over at him. His expression matched his tone. “You’ll have to be more specific.” He rested his chin on your shoulder.

“I fucking knew this would happen,” Karlach said, coming down from her laughing fit. “Soldier’s had her eye on you for a while now, Fangs.”

“Karlach!” You whisper-shouted.

“Oh, I’m aware,” you felt Astarion turn his head to look at you. 

Suddenly Gale, Lae’zel, and Wyll joined the fray. Scratch ran to them and happily weaved between them as they emerged. 

“We heard a commotion, did you find them?” Gale halted when he saw you and Astarion sitting together on the ground, him shirtless, you wearing his shirt. “No,” he said, shaking his head.

“Yes,” Astarion said, tilting his head against yours. You gave him a dirty look. 

“Chk! Was that filthy nest of our blankets your doing?” Lae’zel asked, cradling her greatsword proudly. 

You groaned and hid your face in your hands again. 

“It would appear so,” Wyll confirmed awkwardly. 

“You vampires have a disgusting way of mating if that nest was any indication,” Lae’zel narrowed her eyes and lifted her nose in the air judgmentally. “Far too soft.”

Astarion scoffed and pulled back from you. “I’ll have you know that vampires mate in the most satisfying- well, we don’t mate, necessarily, we’re not dogs, but we, well at least I, am always an exemplary lover.”

Shadowheart ignored him and walked forward, crouching down and resting a hand on your shoulder. You looked at her. “Are you okay?”

“What?” you laughed in disbelief. “Yes, I’m fine.”

“He didn’t… coerce you into something, did he?”

“Excuse me?” Astarion sounded insulted. “I always ask permission first, darling.”

“Your charms can be quite overwhelming at times, Astarion,” Gale said. 

“And wouldn’t you like having my charms turned on you, wizard,” Astarion sneered. 

“Well, let’s not jump to any conclusions,” Wyll held up his hands, gesturing for the others to relax.

“Everyone!” You raised your voice. All eyes settled on you. “Nothing happened between us that I didn’t expressly and happily agree to.”

Karlach started chuckling again. “Good for you, Soldier.”

“Thank you, Karlach,” said Astarion. 

You narrowed your eyes at him. 

He shrugged. “What?”

You groaned and stood up, wiping grass and forest debris off your clothes. You adjusted Astarion’s shirt on your shoulders, making sure you weren’t showing off too much to your companions. 

“Is there a reason you all came out here? Or was it just to mortify me? Because mission accomplished!”

“It’s midday,” informed Wyll. “We grew worried when the two of you seemingly vanished and didn’t return.”

“Halsin and the tieflings are coming to camp tonight to celebrate our victory against the goblins,” Shadowheart crossed her arms. 

“Yes, and it wouldn’t be a great look if our leader and the gangly one were missing,” Gale said.

“Gangly?!” Astarion exclaimed, very clearly not gangly. 

“You’re- okay, well, I hadn’t seen you shirtless before now,” Gale amended. 

“Like what you see?” Astarion teased. 

“Astarion,” you scolded. 

He sighed and got up, wrapping an arm around you and resting a hand on your hip. 

You went red as you watched your companions track his hand. 

“Listen, people,” Astarion said, sounding serious. 

You saw your companions’ eyes shift to the vampire. 

“Don’t give her a hard time. This was my doing.” Shadowheart was about to say something but Astarion raised his voice a bit. “While yes, she gave permission in everything that we did, this wouldn’t have happened if I hadn’t suggested it in the first place.”

“I could have suggested something much better, surely,” Lae’zel huffed.

“I mean, did you-?” Karlach thrust her hips in the air with her fists at her sides.

“Oh my gods,” you groaned.

“I don’t kiss and tell, darling,” Astarion said, squeezing your hip slightly. 

Karlach smirked smugly and winked at you both. 

You shook your head and looked up, silently begging any god that was listening to kill you and to do it quickly. 

“We should get back to camp,” Wyll suggested diplomatically. “Let these two collect themselves.” 

“So what does this mean?” Shadowheart asked, ignoring Wyll. 

“Shadowheart,” Wyll warned but she waved him off.

“What do you mean?” You asked.

“Are you only going to sleep with the pathetic vampire moving forward?” Lae’zel stated bluntly.

You and Astarion looked at each other. You saw the slightest flash of uncertainty in his eyes and smiled. “If he’ll let me,” you said. 

A small smile appeared on his face in return.

Lae’zel groaned. “K'chakhi. Your loss.” She turned and walked back into the forest, slinging her greatsword over her back.

You bit your lip, feeling guilty about Lae’zel’s feelings, but Karlach soon slid into your vision. “Congrats, you crazy kids,” she laughed and pretended to punch your arm, then followed on Lae’zel’s heels, Scratch bounding close behind her.

Gale walked over, his face stoic. He stood in front of Astarion and held out his hand. 

Astarion scowled. “What is this, do you want some sort of handout?” 

“I want to shake your hand, you buffoon,” Gale sounded frustrated. 

“Gale…” you said sorrowfully. 

“No no, think nothing of it,” he waved you off. “The right man won out in the end.”

Astarion took his hand and shook it. “Better luck next time,” he jeered. 

“Astarion,” you scolded again. “You both know I’m not something to win, right?”

“Of course you’re not,” Gale nodded. “Apologies, I misspoke. I’ll see you both at camp. Lunch is bread and cheese to save room for tonight’s festivities.” He stiffly turned and walked back towards the trees. Wyll gave him a sympathetic look, then caught your eye. He nodded somewhat sadly and followed after Gale. 

“Well that certainly doesn’t feel good,” you said, holding a hand to your chest and breathing deeply.

“Not quite finished yet, love,” Astarion nodded over towards Shadowheart who lingered nearby. 

She approached slowly, holding her hands behind her back. Astarion released your hip and moved away, sensing what Shadowheart aimed to do. You looked at him curiously, but your attention was drawn back to Shadowheart as she threw her arms around your neck. 

“You’re happy?” She asked softly.

“Shadowheart…” you smiled into her hair. “Yes, I’m happy. Thank you.”

She pulled back to look at you in the eyes, double checking your expression. When she saw that you were genuine, she nodded. She cleared her throat and looked over at Astarion. 

She pointed an accusatory finger at him. “Hurt her, and you will never know a happy day again.”

Astarion held up his hands defensively. “I won’t-”

“You have never known the pain of Lady Shar’s wrath, and you’d be smart to keep it that way, so help me gods, Astarion.”

“I got it,” he said flatly. 

“Our Lady of Loss would not hesitate to strike you where you stand-”

“I think he gets it,” you said, placing a hand on her shoulder. “Thank you, Shadowheart.”

Shadowheart narrowed her eyes at Astarion before she looked back at you. “I’ll see you at camp. Don’t dally.” She looked pointedly at Astarion who shrugged helplessly. 

When she headed back into the forest, you and Astarion were finally alone. 

You let out a heavy sigh.

“That was a lot,” Astarion joined you at your side.

“Wait, did you know those people?” you smirked at him.

“Vaguely,” he smirked back and caught you in a kiss. “At least I don’t have to hold back from doing that at camp now.” He held you close in his arms.

You sighed again and laid your head on his shoulder. “You were right. I didn’t realize so many of them felt something for me.”

“That seems to be because you block out the advances of others.”

You shoved him playfully. “How dare you turn my pitiful backstory against me.”

He smiled and held out his hand. “Come on, let’s go dismantle that ‘disgusting’ nest.” He did his best to impersonate Lae’zel on “disgusting.” 

It made you laugh. “Okay.”

You took his hand and let him lead you through the trees back to the blankets and pillows that you’d spent the night on. 

When you arrived, you picked up your shirt and bra, feeling mild embarrassment that the others had probably seen them and drawn (correct) conclusions. You removed Astarion’s shirt and threw it back at him, hitting him in the face and quickly covered your chest with your forearm. 

Astarion laughed as his shirt fell into his awaiting hands. “Darling, you don’t have to hide from me,” he narrowed his eyes seductively. “I’ve already seen it all.” He tossed the shirt aside and made his way over to you.

“Feels different in the light of day,” you admitted self-consciously. “Worse, I guess.”

“Now, now,” he said, gently pulling your arm away from your chest, “let me see you in the daylight.” You allowed him to move your arm but didn’t look at him. “Lovely,” he breathed, and kissed you hard. 

You inhaled in surprise, but immediately gave in and slipped your tongue into his mouth and your arms over his shoulders. His hand came up and began massaging your left breast, his icy touch sending a shock wave through you and making you moan. 

Instantly, you pulled away and took a step back. “Careful,” you said as Astarion stared at you wide-eyed, his hand frozen in the air where he’d been palming your breast, “I thought you wanted to take things slow?”

He made a sound somewhere between a groan and a dry heave. “Stop being so nice to me,” he avoided your gaze. “It makes me want to… be nice back.”

“Gods forbid,” you laughed, and bent to pick up your bra which had fallen back amongst the pillows. 

All of a sudden, you found yourself face down in the blankets, the wind knocked out of you and Astarion’s body weight pressed firmly on top of you.

“Astarion,” you wheezed, “what are you doing?”

His voice was sultry in your ear, “If you’ll remember, I said I wanted to take my time with you.”

Sexy as that was, you couldn’t breathe. You reached behind yourself and smacked Astarion’s back with your palm. “Living creatures need to breathe, idiot!”

“Oh,” he realized his error and rolled off of you. You had no time to adjust yourself before he flipped you over and hovered above you on his hands and knees. 

You blew some hair out of your face, irritated. “Did you just tackle me like I was some sort of prey?”

“My dear, I would never,” he bowed his head and kissed your neck.

“And yet I find myself on the ground, even though I didn’t put myself here,” you tangled your hands in his hair, your voice wobbly. 

“You’ve always been rather clumsy,” he murmured teasingly. 

You took a deep breath and pushed him away. His lips were still puckered, making you giggle. “Shadowheart told us not to dally,” you reminded him. “And she threatened to kill you, what? Three times?”

“You forget that I’m already dead,” he smiled. “What’s another little death?” He raised his eyebrows suggestively.

You snorted. “Bad.”

“I thought that was rather clever, actually.”

You rolled your eyes affectionately. “We should really head back.”

Astarion whined and hung his head. “Let me have you again, woman!”

“But you said-”

“I know what I said!” He lifted his head and looked you in the eye. “And while I appreciate your concern, right now, I very much want to be inside of you again.”

You smiled cautiously. “Are you sure?”

He rolled his eyes and kissed you, lowering his body to roll his hips against yours and making his erection very obviously. You jolted at the unexpected sensation and he pulled back.

“Unless this is too much for you,” he searched your face for hesitancy. “You’re probably still sore and we don’t have to rush anything-”

You gripped the back of his head and tightened your fist into his curls. “Please,” you whispered, “fuck me again.”

A wicked grin bloomed on Astarion’s face and he kissed you passionately, rolling his hips against yours for friction. You moaned into his mouth, but he broke the kiss after only a few moments. “Like I said, love, I want to take my time with you.”

He rose up onto his knees and began untying the laces of your pants. You watched him intently and bit your lip as he removed them fully from your legs. He made quick work of his own and crawled back on top of you. His thumb hooked under your panties and his eyes met yours. You nodded and he pulled them down gently and discarded them close by. He then laid beside you, his eyes heavy with lust.

“Come here, precious thing,” he purred and you inched yourself closer to him. “Turn around,” he instructed. You gave him a confused half smile but did what he asked. He reached forward and pulled your hips back, causing you to feel his still-clothed cock against your ass.

“What are you doing?” you asked nervously. 

Astarion chuckled. “Not that, fear not.” He kissed your shoulder as he slid his left arm under you and settled his hand on your lower stomach. A chill ran through you as he nuzzled his head onto your shoulder. “Fair warning,” you could hear the mischief in his voice as his right hand made itself known in front of your face. He wiggled his fingers in a delicate wave, then brought it down between your thighs. 

A gasp escaped your throat when you felt his fingers swipe through your folds.

Astarion tilted his head and kissed your throat. “So wet already, darling.”

“You’re handsome,” you said by way of explanation.

He hummed against your shoulder and began to rub your clit. A shuddering breath left your mouth and your eyes fluttered shut. Astarion paused for a moment to lift your leg and hike it back over his. “This will feel good,” he said against your skin and dragged his fingers through your folds again before inserting a digit into your cunt. 

You threw your head back in surprised pleasure, which made Astarion turn and nip at your ear. He began pumping and curling his finger slowly inside of you. Your breath caught when his thumb resumed its spot on your clit and whined when his finger inside of you hit a particularly sensitive spot. He adjusted his angle to hit it repeatedly. 

“Astarion,” you moaned, your head clouded with nothing but ecstasy. 

“Yes, my sweet, you’re gripping me so tight,” his voice was sensual in your ear. “Do you think you can take a little more?”

You nodded, your eyes shut tight. 

“Words, darling.”

“Another…” you said breathily.

“Another what?”

Your voice was sing-songy. “Astarion, if you don’t put another finger in me right now, I’m leaving you.”

He laughed loudly before moving his mouth close to your ear again. “You like me too much.” Then he leaned up a little to catch your eye, his finger still pumping between your thighs. “Right?”

You smiled sympathetically, seeing your words had spooked him a little. You reached a hand up to cup his cheek. “I’m not going anywhere,” you clarified. “But I might kill you.”

“Got it,” Astarion dragged his index finger through your folds, then carefully added it to your cunt alongside his middle finger. 

You exhaled, moving your hand down from his cheek to his hand resting on your stomach. You laced your fingers together and squeezed when he hit a particularly good spot, getting you to moan out an, “Oh, gods.”

“Like that?” He asked cockily, reaching and curling to hit the spot again. 

“Yes, my love,” you sighed, grinning upwards with your eyes closed. 

Behind you, you felt Astarion’s cock twitch.

Your eyes opened and you looked back at him. 

He smiled back at you sheepishly. “It does that sometimes, darling. When something is particularly arousing.”

Your breaths were coming out short and keeping in time with the pumping of his fingers. “Was it… ‘my love?’”

Astarion let out a low moan and hid his face in your shoulder before reemerging and nodding. “Coming from you while you’re in the throes of passion with me is really… something.”

You laughed between whimpers. “My… loooooove,” you sang, squeezing his hand again. “Your fingers feel heavenly, my looooove.”

“Fuck this,” Astarion said, pulling his fingers out of you unceremoniously and curling you forward with his body so he could shimmy out of his underwear. 

“What are you doing,” you winced and whined childishly, “I was so close!”

“Unfortunately, darling, if I’m not inside you within a matter of seconds, I’m going to lose it completely.”

“Wouldn’t want that,” you said, half dazed and still coming down from your almost climax. 

You felt his hand bump your ass as he pumped his cock and you instantly went stiff. “You’re not going to…?”

Astarion let out a breathy laugh. “Oh, my sweet, you’re not nearly ready for something like that yet.”

A relieved sigh escaped you. 

“We could always work our way up-”

“No, that’s okay,” you said quickly. 

“There’s nothing wrong with-”

“No, of course not-”

“But we can-”

“Let’s not talk about this now,” you patted Astarion’s cheek.

“Understood,” he nodded and resumed pumping his cock. “Hook your leg back over mine, darling.” When you followed his instruction, he kissed your shoulder once more. You felt the head of his cock glide through your folds until it prodded at your entrance and you let out a shaky exhale. “Don’t be scared,” he muttered, squeezing your hand. “Are you ready?”

You inhaled. “Yes.”

Just as he had last night, Astarion was slow to enter you. This time you heard him whimpering with his mouth so close to your ear. 

“Fuck,” he murmured, dragging his fangs from your shoulder to your neck, “still so tight.”

“Obviously,” you said, squeezing your eyes shut, but not feeling nearly as uncomfortable as you had the first time he’d entered you. You let out a satisfied exhale when his hips bumped your ass. 

“Let me know what I can move,” Astarion said against your skin, his words barely recognizable. 

“You can move,” you said almost immediately, reaching a hand up behind you and twisting it into Astarion’s hair. You moved it over a little to play with the tip of his ear.

He let out a loud groan and snapped his hips forward, probably with more force than he meant to. “Apologies,” he whispered, “that felt heavenly.”

“Keep going, my love,” you encouraged and he caught your eye with a seductive smile. 

He continued to pump his cock into your dripping hole and brought his right hand down to your clit. He licked a stripe from your neck up to your ear. “You know, I really did intend to take my time with you just now,” he spoke lowly from the back of his throat. As if to illustrate his point, he slowed his hips to take long, languid strokes out, and then moved back into you at an equally slow pace. His thumb on your clit slowed as he disconnected his left hand from yours and brought it up to fondle your breast. He kissed up your shoulder to your neck sloppily and sucked on the fading bite marks from last night. 

You moaned loudly, hooking your foot around his calf and tightening your fist in his hair. “We’d really be dallying, then,” you commented.

He made a frustrated noise. “Don’t even allude to the cleric right now,” he pulled away from your neck. “Unless it’s to tell me I’m a much better lover than her.” He snapped his hips into you, hard. 

“I don’t have much of a reference, genius,” you responded breathlessly. 

“Right,” he said, and picked up speed at your clit. His mouth returned to sucking on your throat. 

“Oohhh,” you sighed. You let out a gasp when Astarion’s left hand pinched your nipple.

“You feel wonderful, my darling,” spit connected him to your neck.

“So do you,” you brought your hand up to cover Astarion’s that was kneading your breast. “You can bite me, if you want.”

He groaned loudly and bumped his nose against your jaw. “Well,” he said between thrusts, “if you insist.” 

He kissed your throat before biting down, his hips instantly picking up speed. 

The ice that shot into your veins was a shock as always, but melted into a fuzzy pleasure that had your eyes drooping in ecstasy. 

Astarion took long pulls of your blood as he continued thrusting, circling your clit, and needing your breast. How he was keeping track of everything at once was beyond you in this pleasant, foggy state. 

“Darling,” he pulled away suddenly, swallowing loudly and seemingly out of breath. “May I taste you as you come?”

Your tongue lolled to the side, but his voice snapped you out of it. You nodded up at him. “Yes, please.”

“What do you need?” He licked the wounds on your neck. 

“As much as I’m enjoying you taking your time,” you said, “harder and faster.”

“Easy,” a cocky grin graced his face as a drop of your blood dripped down his chin. 

His hips picked up a brutal pace that nearly had you reaching your peak, and he pressed further onto your clit, his tight circles picking up speed as well. 

“Oh, Astarion,” you moaned loudly, reaching back again to grip his hair.

“Come for me, dearest,” he spoke softly against your throat, but loud enough that you could hear, “I want to hear you sing again. I want to taste how sweet your blood is when I make you cum on my cock.” He continued leaving sloppy kisses against your neck.

“I’m close,” you confirmed, your eyes shut tight and your body tensing. 

“Go ahead, love, I’ve got you,” his hard thrusts were becoming uneven, but ever the professional, his voice remained mostly even. “You’re so tight and warm, thank you for letting me taste you.” He kissed your mouth. “Darling.” Another kiss. “Beloved.” One more. “Mine.”

You cried out as you fell over the edge, your cunt squeezing his cock repeatedly, only to cry out again as you felt Astarion’s fangs enter your neck once more. 

“Astarion!” You shouted, squeezing his hand and pulling his hair and wrapping your shaking leg around his. Almost simultaneously, you felt Astarion spill inside you as he moaned your name loudly into your neck, his hips pulsing clumsily against you. 

The sensation of him drawing your blood was still pleasantly fuzzy, but you could feel yourself becoming light headed. You tapped his arm twice, your signal for him to stop, and he pulled away, leaning his forehead against your temple and breathing heavily. 

“Still cumming,” he groaned and clenched his teeth, his hips faltering in their rhythm. 

After another moment, his body finally relaxed and he pulled you closer into his chest, catching his breath. “That was… amazing,” he sighed happily, leaning forward to lick the remaining blood from your neck. “If I knew blood could taste that good-” His voice trailed off. “Well, I’m sure I’d do something about it if I could.” He seemed pleased with his own answer and hummed contentedly behind you.

“I’m glad it was to your liking,” you said, looking back at him with a smile. He bent forward and kissed you happily. “I’m like a fine vintage,” you teased.

Astarion pursed his lips. “You’re far from vintage, darling, you’ll have to work on your wine related japes.” 

You laughed and a comfortable silence fell between you. Astarion rested both of his hands on your stomach. Which growled suddenly.

“What’s that like?” He teased, licking a wayward drop of blood from the side of his mouth. 

Your body tensed. “Oh gods, bread and cheese!”

Astarion blinked at you. “Are those some sort of new deities I’m not aware of, or-?”

“No, that’s what Gale said we’re having for lunch.”

“And that’s important because-?”

“Because we DALLIED and there’s a PARTY tonight and now Shadowheart is going to KILL us.”

“I see.” Astarion remained still, fixed in place. Then suddenly he was pulling out of you at a breakneck speed and reaching for his clothes. 

You winced a little at the sensation but scrambled for your own clothes, wiping yourself down with the cloth Astarion provided again and got dressed in what was probably record time. 

Incredibly, you both looked presentable. 

“We do make a gorgeous pair,” Astarion cocked his hip and smirked at you, going in for a kiss.

You swatted him away. “Enough flirting, loverboy, we can talk about us later!” You started reaching for blankets and pillows. 

“Us,” Astarion stood on the sidelines, testing out the word on his tongue. “I do so like the sound of that.”

“Help me, would you?” You threw a pile of blankets at him, hitting him in the face and blowing his hair back. 

He groaned. “It should be a crime to rush after you’ve just made love to the most amazing woman.” He came up behind you and smacked your butt teasingly. 

You stood up straight and tried to look angry. “We are going to die if we don’t head back right now.” Astarion wasn’t buying your anger, so you turned bashful. “You made loooove to me?” You clasped your hands together by your face. “You think I’m amaaaazing?” You twirled some of your hair for good measure.

Astarion sighed. “Be serious, woman, we’re going to die!” His voice was exasperated but he smirked at you. He bent to pick up more blankets and pillows and you did the same until you both had piles you could barely see over and nothing was left behind.

“Ugh, I’m going to have to do so much laundry,” you muttered. “Seriously, how did you manage bringing all this out here?”

“Well first, everything was folded neatly.”

“We don’t have time.”

“And second, multiple trips, darling.”

“We can’t afford to leave camp EVER again.”

Try as you might to rush back to camp, you still had to maneuver through a forest and be careful where you stepped. The pair of you moved as quickly as you could, which wasn’t as fast as was probably necessary to avoid Shadowheart’s ire. 

“Soooo…” You broke the silence after a few moments. 

“Gods,” Astarion rolled his eyes, “what?”

“‘My love,’ huh?” You waggled your eyebrows at him.

“What about it?”

“You liiiiiiked it,” you teased. 

“I-” You could see that he thought about arguing but decided not to. “I’m not used to the pet names turned on me. It’s… nice.”

“You’re cute,” you said, looking over at him affectionately and nearly tripping over a tree root as a result.

Astarion snickered, then made his face serious. “I’m the furthest thing from cute. I’m a horrifying monster.” He lowered his voice as if that would back him up.

“Yeah, but you like being mushy.” 

“I do not.”

“You do!” You moved closer to him and bumped his hip with your own. “You were so sweet to me yesterday. And just now.” 

“It’s different with you,” he said quietly.

“Oh?” You raised your eyebrows.

“It’s… um… This is stupid, I hate it.” He tried to walk ahead of you but you caught up easily.

“No, no! Please.” You gave him a reassuring look. “I, of all people, will not judge you.”

He sighed. “It’s just… nice to feel like something is mine.” He was quick to correct, “Not that I own you but… I don’t know. You’re not a victim. Not a target. Not just… one night it’s better to forget. You’re something entirely new.”

You smiled over at him. “I like you too, weirdo.”

Astarion humphed. “Whatever.” He moved closer and bumped your hip with his own. The two of you shared a fond look, then turned back to the path ahead.

If Shadowheart was going to kill you, at least you’d die together. 

You both quickened your pace to try and avoid that fate, but it was a lovely thought.

Soon, you began to make out the bright colors of your tents through the trees and the sound of your companions chatting by the fire. 

You turned to Astarion. “See you on the other side.”

He nodded, determined. “It’s been a pleasure servicing you, darling.”

“I hope she kills you first.”

You shared a laugh before you took a calming breath. 

And stepped into camp. 

[kiame-sama]

Humans Are Extinct (Yandere!TWST x Fem!Reader) Monster AU pt 27

(Neige is a Mourning Dove Harpy, and often sings with other Mourning Doves in the early mornings, calling with them and cooing as he flies around Sage Island. Neige is a stress plucker, so he will occasionally have bald-spots on his neck where he had picked and plucked his own feathers. He usually tosses his feathers after molts, but has since been collecting and saving his feathers so he can use them to make something for the Human with them)

Warnings; ovulation, explanation of ovulation and menstrual cycles, less than behaved students, protective Platonic Yanderes, several yanderes, competing yanderes, more fluff, comfort chapter, selkie, hellcat, sphinx, harpies, minotaur, shadow-man, drider, plant Nymph, Nemean Lion, Gnoll, Werewolf, Shinigami, Unicorn, Kelpie, Water Nymph, Satyr, Fawn, merfolk, Cecaelia, Genie, Naga, Dragon, Vampire Bat,

~~~~

Things had settled down considerably when Malleus and the other students- those that came with Crowley and Diasomnia- left. The tension that had been in the air lulled and quickly faded away along with the icy cold. Thankfully, you had managed to keep Malleus calm and bring him back to reason without incident and you knew Crowley and the other professors were glad too.

You sighed, sitting back on one of the many couches with Grim as Divus was quite content to join you, looking as worn and stressed as you felt. Even Trein seemed to be counting himself lucky that Malleus was convinced to leave without incident. It vaguely interested you to see the professors in such a domestic setting as the all seemed much more approachable now that they were the ones guarding you. Part of you felt relieved to get a break from the intensity of the other students.

"Tea?"

You looked up somewhat startled to a cup of tea being held out to you. Out of politeness, you accepted the cup while Trein joined you on your other side, lounging on the long couch with a sigh.

"I had a few questions for you, if I may?"

"Of course Professor."

"Please, Trein or Mozus would suffice, (Y/n). No need for formalities in your own home."

"Force of habit, Sir."

"How often is your cycle? It would behoove us to plan in advance so your schedule can be addressed and so we are made aware ahead of time."

You sipped the tea to give yourself a moment to collect your thoughts, figuring one of the professors would ask eventually. At least they seemed far less influenced by your scent and by your ovulation, so they seemed safe enough to let your guard down around them. The tea was a nice herbal blend that was gentle and soothing in your throat.

"Monthly. The bleeding period marks an end of the cycle to begin anew. Ovulation is at the height of the cycle, meaning more fertile, not more interested in finding a mate."

"Mating isn't required for ovulation?"

"No. But there is a set timer on my fertility as a result. Every month marks another sex cell- we call these cells eggs- lost and most Humans have a set number of eggs. I still have years left on my timer, but it does continue to march on. When I am out of eggs, the cycle stops and I am considered to no longer be fertile."

"How long does the actual ovulation period last?"

"The height of it is only 12-24 hours. But the hormonal imbalance leading up to and after take a few days."

Trein nodded, sipping his own tea as he hummed watching the drink pensively. You watched Crowley walk over to the angled couch next to the one you were on, curling his legs under him like a great big bird perching. His talons ended in wickedly sharp points, and you vaguely realized he must have removed his shoes before settling. Divus spoke up next, his voice a relaxed drawl.

"So for at least a day everyone on campus will be attempting to burst the doors down. Lucky for us today and tomorrow are free of classes. I trust you've been keeping up with your homework?"

"As best I can. It has been a hectic first month. Goodness knows I've been attacked so many times it feels like years have passed."

Divus frowned at this, watching you for a long moment before he spun his red riding crop between his gloved fingers. A sudden glow came from the gem on it and you found your clothes had changed to comfortable lounge-wear in reds, blacks, and whites. While you examined your new clothes a sudden weight fell on your shoulders and you realized he had placed his fur over you. This must have been an act of extreme trust or protectiveness as even Crowley looked surprised with Divus' behavior.

The lovely professor patted the top of your head gently as he settled back down, almost insisting you stay put where you had settled. Trein seemed to be of a mind with Divus as the couch changed shape to a much more comfortable and plush piece of furniture, the large screen on the far wall adjacent flicked to life. As you got comfortable in the large and warm fur coat, you heard footsteps and turned to see Coach Vargas and Sam approaching with their arms full of snacks.

Grim purred excitedly and snuggled into your lap as a movies began to play, the professors all settling down around you.

~•§•~

"Can you believe this, Rook? Telling us- her sworn guards- that we can't be present to protect her during such a delicate time!"

The Harpy was ranting angrily to the Drider that accompanied him, Epel keeping pace next to the large Drider as they followed the Peacock. Naturally, Vil was furious he wasn't allowed to even accompany the others in confronting Malleus. He deserved the right to be there after saving those Royal Sword Academy fools that had let themselves be stabbed in the back by that prince. Instead, Azul and his two goons were selected to go.

He was so angry he could scream!

"I don't believe we have actually sworn to anything, Roi du Poison, merely agreed to accept duties should they fall upon us. Non, it would not be fair to claim we are sworn knights, but perhaps Mademoiselle Trickster would look upon us favorably if we did swear ourselves to her protection."

"We will have to do that when the duty to guard her falls upon Pomefiore. Which means you at least have a few days to shape up, Epel!"

The plant Nymph jumped at suddenly being called out, nodding quickly to the temperamental Harpy ahead of him. Epel had been busy thinking about the Human in question, remembering how soft her hands were holding his and the way she stood up for him so passionately. He wanted to protect her from everyone else and prove he can take on the protector role for her, so her soft hands never have to harden with work.

"O-of course, Housewarden Vil!"

"Don't think I've forgotten how you kept slipping back into your accent during the photoshoot despite my warnings."

"Right... Sorry, Housewarden Vil, I will work harder."

"As you should. We all need to be at peak when we finally have the right to guard her."

Rook and Epel both nodded, quickly agreeing with the proud Harpy.

"Yes, Vil!"

~•§•~

"To think, no one was selected this week! I thought we already prooved we were trustworthy to guard that Mousey!"

Leona snarled and paced atop his sun-warmed rocks where he usually lounged in Savanaclaw, clearly in a bad mood. He was growling and his tail lashed behind him as he walked, not only angry at being cheated out of a day so that ridiculous Malleus could stop his bitch-fit, but furious he was not trusted at this crucial time. Nevermind the fact that the same dorm is not likely to be selected twice in a row, Leona was angry and felt cheated.

"I'm just sayin', Leona, maybe it's a good thing she's stuck with the teachers."

"And how," Leona roared, "is this possibly a good thing!?"

"Because no one else can get to her either, right?"

"..."

"If they're keeping us away, they're keeping everyone away."

"Ruggie, for once you actually seem to have a brain rattling around in that skull of yours."

The Gnoll huffed at the obvious insult, planning to steal all of the cash Leona had in his wallet as revenge. Jack was sitting nearby, unsure what was his rank now that Savanaclaw was no longer guarding the precious Human. It seemed like Leona wasn't keen to run him off, in any case.

"Isn't this a good thing for her too? I mean, yesterday was rough on her with the Overblot and the attack. I think she deserves some time away from it all."

"Oh? And you think the professors aren't just going to stress her out more?"

"No," Jack shook his head, his fur bouncing with his movements, "you saw how mad professor Divus got when you made her skip his class. And Trein is always praising her any time she answers a question in class. I think the professors all see her as their pup and are going to act like she is their pup. Even Headmage Crowley calls her his little chick."

"Annoying as you are, you have a point, Puppers. Nothing to do about it now."

Leona sighed and flopped down almost dramatically on the warm rocks, the tension in the dorm falling as the Lion returned to lounging. Of course, everyone was still keen to know who was declared winner after the interruption during the Spelldrive. Most of the Pride figured they would win, not even aware Malleus had been holding back during their game.

~•§•~

"Do you think we should tell Papa Hades?"

"Tell him what?"

"That she is in the middle of her cycle!"

"I mean, maybe, but Headmage Crowley said he has it under control."

"Come on, Idi-nii!"

Ortho whined loudly, making Idia look over at him from the game he had been playing with his online buddies, trying to set up a game with the more absent than usual MuscleRed. Idia figured everyone was just gonna let the professors handle it, no need for him to step in. Even if there was a problem- which there wasn't- he still had cameras all over that building and would be the first to know of any issues.

"What??"

"Aren't you the least bit worried about her?"

"She has the entire staff of NRC as her DPS, Tanks, and Healers, what would I be worried for?"

Ortho sighed, seeming to visibly deflate as his breath fogged up his mask. Idia was right, of course, but Ortho was still worried. He liked playing games with (Y/n) as well as talking with her about everything he could think of. It was only natural the young Shinigami was worried.

"Look, Ortho, we can video call her later if she feels up for it, okay?"

"Okay..."

~•§•~

"To think, those-! Those-! Those hooligans know (Y/n) is in the middle of her cycle and completely exposed to their vile thoughts!"

"Riddle," Trey tried to soothe the upset Unicorn who was prancing and pacing and tossing his head back and forth angrily, "I'm sure the professors have it well in hand."

"Do they, Trey? Do they? Absolute hogwash!"

"You saw Malleus return to Diasomnia, and there was no black sky or rolling storm so he left peacefully. Everyone else who could pose an issue couldn't possibly stand against all of the staff together."

Riddle stopped his trotting and pawed at the ground in frustration, ripping up a bit of the grass sod under his hooves. Even his tail was curling and flicking as he took back up his worried trotting pace. Riddle was working himself into a meltdown and even Trey wasn't doing much to help soothe the distressed Unicorn, though not for a lack of trying.

"-and if someone gets by them, what then? No matter what happens someone-"

Riddle was babbling at this point, occasionally kicking one leg back as he walked and stomped angrily. He was obviously no longer listening to any of the four who stood trying to calm him, muttering axiously and snorting every few steps. No matter what Trey said there was clearly no snapping Riddle out of his current mindset.

Cater had retired to lay along Trey's back, lazily looking at his phone as he checked the ever increasing follower count on (Y/n)'s magicam account. Cater was glad that the staff thought of adding himself, Vil, and Rook as page admins so the soft Human would be kept away from the thirsty messages sent by countless monster accounts. At least he could delete these messages and send the tame ones through for her to read.

"THE TREES!"

"The... Trees?"

"Yes, the trees outside of Ramshackle! How did I miss it? They're easily a way someone could get in and hurt dear (Y/n)! We must warn the Headmage at once!"

Riddle reared up, whinnying loudly as he took off towards the mirror, Trey tiredly following after with Cater tagging along on the ride. This left Ace and Deuce looking at one another before shrugging. They wanted to see (Y/n), sure, but they also knew better than to bother the teachers or her many guards. Maybe they would text and check in on her.

~•§•~

Azul sighed as he and the twins returned to the Monstro Lounge, feeling surprisingly worn even though they weren't the ones facing off with the Dragon. Even being around with that tantalizing scent in the air was all too tempting an offer to their senses despite the beast that stood guarding the soft Human. All three had a taste of those pheremones and felt their own bodies cry out in response, longing for a taste or just to submerge themselves in the alluring scent that taunted them.

"Ne, Azul, d'ya think we're gonna get to guard Shrimpy soon?"

"I certainly don't see why not. Erikír's betrayal and Overblot certainly put us in good standing with her given we were who she sought out in times of strife. Leona was allowed to guard her after he proved himself, I don't see why the same won't be true for us."

"She sure smelled good though. Just wanna take a big bite and squeeze till she pops!"

Azul frowned at the swaying Eel that giggled to himself, biting playfully at the empty air in front of him. He had been in a considerably good mood following the brief encounter with (Y/n) and had not stopped talking about her. Similarly, Jade seemed to be lost in his own world, standing off to the side with his mouth open and his eyes closed.

Azul could tell immediately that both twins were affected by (Y/n)'s alluring scent and longed to return to the soft Human for another dose of that scent. Not like Azul was any better. He could feel the way he longed to reach out and grab her, holding her close to his chest while he nuzzled her neck. The things he would do if he were only allowed.

~•§•~

"Hey, Jamil, what d'you think made the wish work when (Y/n) made it?"

"Hm?"

"The wish. What do you think made it work?"

"I don't know, but don't you dare make another one or you might just wind up killing her on accident."

"But what if it means something?"

Jamil sighed as he tidied up his nest of pillows, Kalim's beautiful golden lamp shining in the center. The Genie was lounging next to his lamp, toying with the gem-topped lid and smiling absently. It had been on his mind ever since it happened last week and he wondered if it had something to do with the Human.

"I doubt it means anything. You can't grant another wish for her, that's final."

"But why? I'm sure it will be fine-!"

"Kalim! You kill anyone who makes a wish. Anyone. No matter how well intentioned you are, you kill them. Consider yourself lucky it didn't kill her. Not even being a member of the Al-Asim family would be able to save you from Malleus if you killed her. You are so lucky it didn't turn out differently. Don't tempt fate."

~•§•~

"Malleus?"

Lilia asked gently, approaching the sullen prince who sat looking out over the Diasomnia domain. Though he had agreed to leave at the behest of (Y/n), he still wanted to fly straight back and make that soft Human he adored accept him as her mate. His instincts roared and rattled in its gilded jail to be set free so that he may take what is rightfully his.

Malleus didn't even hear the other Fae approaching as he glowered and stared outwards. He wanted his mate and he didn't want to have to keep his distance, but those words kept repeating in his head and tormenting his every moment. The Dragon didn't know his beloved (Y/n) could ever look so angry like she did in that moment.

'I don't think I want to be part of your Hoard.'

Ice slowly crept up under him as those words repeated in his head and he clutched his chest in pain. Lilia took notice as well and quickly stepped in to soothe the Dragon. Though he wished she had done it differently and without threat, Lilia had to admit that (Y/n) handled Malleus expertly and he had no doubt she would fare just as well as his bonded mate.

"Malleus, I'm going to guess you keep hearing her threatening to leave the Hoard? She told you she wanted to stay so long as you could respect her space during her cycle. She still wants to be in the Hoard, she's just under a lot of stress right now."

"... It hurts, Lilia. I didn't think it would hurt so much."

"Love can hurt. Especially when you already love someone so much you just want to hold them close, but they aren't to that point yet. (Y/n) Isn't to that point yet, but she will be."

"What if she denies me? If she turns me away when I finally bare my heart to her?"

"She won't."

Malleus slumped into his arms, hiding his face as he fell to his knees at the window, his heart seizing in pain at the thought of what could happen. He didn't want to face the loneliness of his existence for much longer. It was a painfully lonely existence, the life of a Dragon, but now there was a light in his darkness, stars in his inky sky, the moon shining upon his face in the endless night.

The stars never seemed quite as bright without his darling love close by. The air was never as sweet. The whining of the wind was not as musical. Even his own nest felt so very empty and lonesome.

Lilia rest a hand on the Dragon's shoulder, laying one wing across his back to soothe him. It wasn't the embrace Malleus was craving, but he still took comfort from his friend, Hoard member, and caretaker. All the Bat could really do was be there for the Dragon while they waited.

~•§•~

You were cozy and extremely comfortable in what was now a cocoon comprised of Divus' fur, blankets, snuggly stuffed animals Trein insisted you take, and one happy boy Grim.

Sam was busy making a delicious smelling gumbo in the kitchen while you hummed along happily to the jaunty tune of the movie you were watching. It was catchy and bouncy in all the right ways that had you practically wiggling in your cocoon like a happy silk moth larva. The five men had been quite happy to show you all of their favorite timeless classics and you had to admit the beasts certainly knew how to swing.

For what felt like the first time in a very long time, you were able to just exist and enjoy what you were doing. There was no worry of gently navigating around the beasts feelings or the constant arms race they all seemed to be in for your affections. You could just vibe and snack to your heart's content, feeling so very protected in the large cuddle fortress you had made out of the couch.

Trein had even brought over Lucius who cuddled up to Grim and wrestled with the energetic kit. Even as the two napped in the growing pile of cuddle, Divus was the one to remind you to drink and move around every once in a while. Crowley had been trying to get Trein or Divus to give up their spot to no avail and pouted next to Vargas on the other couch.

If you could get more time like this, maybe things wouldn't be too bad after all.

[thechaoticdruid]

Indulging Curiosity

Astarion x F!Tav (Smut)

Plot: After a particularly gory fight, Astarion can't help but get hot and bothered seeing his favorite little druid all covered in blood. So he invites Tav to join him for an evening of pleasure. Tav begins to reflect on how sex wasn't exactly how she imagined.(This is basically a continuation of Firsts, but this time I decided to use the name Tav instead of Winnie for the reader's enjoyment. THIS CAN BE READ WITHOUT NEEDING TO READ FIRSTS)

Content/Warnings: MDNI. HEAVY Smut. PiV sex, anal sex, oral sex (female receiving), vaginal and anal fingering. Dom/sub, sub Tav, previously virgin Tav, Dom Astarion, light hair pulling, pillow talk, praise kink. Gore and action in the beginning. Galeshaming.

The road was long and treacherous. Tav and her companions had already faced many foes.  These gnolls were no different. It was pretty clear as the young druid slashed one of the beast’s heads clean off, watching it drop down and roll off into the dirt. The gnoll’s blood had completely coated her scimitars and even splattered onto her face and chest. Astarion swiftly slashed his rapier across one of the gnoll's throats before stabbing it right through its windpipe. As the gnoll dropped to the ground dead, Astarion looked back at Tav, eyeing her blood coated figure.  

Be still my undead heart.~

He licked his lips, mouth watering at the sight of his lover drenched in blood.  Tav glanced back at him as the others of their merry little group took a moment to catch their breath, the fight had taken quite a toll on the group. Tav’s eyes met Astarion's and immediately she recognized that look he was giving her. It was the same look he gave her the day they'd stormed the goblin camp, before the night of the tiefling party. She looked off to the side with a blush. Tav was no longer a virgin, but honestly despite the experience it felt as if nothing changed. She would still choke on her own tongue whenever he flirted with her. And gods why did her first time have to be so clumsy!?  

The memory of her screw up where she ended drinking the blood she brought for Astarion will probably forever stay burned into the back of her mind. Haunting her as she lies awake at night. 

Tav groaned with a frown kicking some small rocks across the dirt road with frustration as Astarion approached her.

“My, my, someone's made a mess of herself.” Astarion said, running a finger over Tav's cheek and collecting the stray blood that dribbled down. 

He immediately dipped his finger into his mouth to lick it clean. 

“If you start straight up licking me one of these days we are going to have a serious talk.” Tav rolled her eyes. 

“Oh no no no! I would never do that….Well not in front of the others anyway…” Astarion said, grinning cheekily.  “But if you're interested there are a couple of things I'd like to taste in private…” 

Tav felt a shiver go down her spine. 

“Like….Right now?” She asked, face turning bright red. 

“No pretty thing, not right this second. First we probably should convince the others to set up camp for the evening, then I'll steal you away and eat you right up.~” Astarion purred, eyes looking over the human female longingly. Tav couldn't help but squeeze her legs together. The way he said the last line made her ache between her thighs. 

“Okay…. I'll go talk to the others then.” She said, quickly walking away, face flushed as red as a tomato.  Tav scurried over to where the others were still gathering their bearings. Eyes glanced around the group as she considered her words carefully. Karlach and Lae'zel looked raring and ready to go while Wyll, Gale, and Shadowheart were more on the exhausted side.

“You know the sun will be setting soon and that last fight with the gnolls was a killer on my back. Think I might need to lie down and rest awhile.” Tav spoke up, her tone slightly uneasy. 

“There is still daylight. The more time we waste the greater our chances of being turned into disgusting ghaik become. And I would rather fall on my blade than transform into my enemy.” Lae'zel hissed out, snarling in Tav's face. The human female gulped, feeling a bit intimidated by the fearsome gith.

“B-But look at them!” She began pointing over at the others. “They’ll be massacred in this condition and then we'll never reach the creché at all!”

“They just need a quick breather, soldier. It's not that bad.” Karlach replied.

“Not that bad? Don't you hear Gale’s old wizard knees cracking!? He's about to collapse!” Tav exclaimed.

“What? I'm not that old.” Gale scoffed.

“Those creaky knees don't lie Gale!” The human druid crossed her arms. 

“I have heard Gale's knees cracking at the most inconvenient times.” Wyll added.

“Perhaps Tav is right, rest would probably do us good. Besides, we can always leave come first light tomorrow.” Shadowheart suggested.

Lae'zel sighed, “very well, but if one of us so much as shows any sign of change I am holding our ‘leader’ responsible.” The gith fighter growled out.

“I…..will accept full responsibility.” Tav gulped, nervously.

The things I do for vampire cock….

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After convincing the others to make camp for the evening, Tav participated in helping with the set up despite not having a tent to herself. The druid female was usually content sleeping under the stars (and if it rained she'd use her druidic magic to conjure up a thicket like shelter). However as she hunched over to pick up some firewood she noticed a certain red eyed elf watching her. His blood red orbs were glued to her backside. Tav bit her lip before hauling the wood over to the campfire Wyll had been able to start up before dropping the rest in.  It was then she returned the vampire's gaze.  He smiled at her seductively, long lashes giving her a wink before gesturing to her to come to him with a finger. 

Tav felt her heart race and her cheeks flush. She looked around at the others before scurrying off to follow Astarion as he walked off away from camp, leading her towards a cave at the edge of the river. Tav made sure to grab her bedroll and blankets as she trailed after him like a little lovesick puppy.  Before Astarion Tav had never known a lover's caress or as far as she was concerned not even a lustful glance. The druid was convinced she was homely and undesirable. 

She'd been told that all her life. The vampire spawn was the only one who'd ever made her feel wanted, but deep down she knew there was a catch.  There was something he wanted from her. She assumed it was the guarantee of a willing meal, but she wasn't completely sure. It pained her that their little fling would inevitably come to an end eventually. Astarion made her feel special.

Ashamed as was to admit it she found herself becoming smitten with him.  

Tav stepped into the cave, hearing the sound of water dripping down from somewhere. She walked over and noticed what looked like a hot spring off in the distance.  A pair of strong arms wrapped around her, causing her to squeak and drop her things. 

“Hells Astarion! You scared me!” Tav turned her head to see the grinning rogue. 

“I can't help it. I've been thinking about feasting on you since our last night together.” He chuckled, pressing his hips up against the druid's plump backside.  He was already shirtless as he pulled her against his bare chest, almost immediately going in for a kiss after she had turned her head back. 

“Mmmm!” Tav was a little taken back by his eagerness, but she instantly melted into him, eyes slowly closing as she kissed back. Their lips moved together in sync as Astarion cupped her breasts gently squeezing and kneading them.

Astarion eventually pulled back, leaving a slight string of saliva connecting their lips as Tav panted. Before she knew it the vampiric elf pushed her down into her discarded bedroll, he smirked at her playfully. 

“So sweet of you to bring blankets again darling. Though you'll probably need to wash them by the time we're done here.” He looked at her, licking his lips as his hands moved to pull her shirt over her head.  Tav swiftly discarded her bra once she was bare, letting the vampire spawn get a nice view of her large round breasts. Tav looked down shyly when she noticed him eyeing up her chest. A single clawed finger traced around her nipple, teasing it and making her shutter. 

“I'm not sure what you see in me. In my body….” Tav sighed a bit. 

“What's not to like? Especially when you have these.” Astarion playfully cupped her tits before leaning his head down to plant kisses on each of them. He swirled his tongue around one of her hardening nipples before wrapping his lips around it and sucking gently. 

“A-Ahh…. A-Astarion…” Tav moaned, as Astarion slowly moved to her opposite breast and repeated his actions as his hand moved to massage the other. Her breath hitched and her eyes followed him as he moved down, planting kisses over her plush protruding stomach and moving downwards. His fingers hooked onto the waistband of her trousers before he looked back up at her.

“May I?” Astarion asked before Tav quickly nodded in response. He pulled her pants down along with her boxer like underwear.

“Ahh…” Tav couldn't help but let out a lewd whimper as her elven lover ran a finger over her wet folds, coating the tip of his finger before licking it off slowly. 

“Mmm…. Delicious…” Astarion leaned down and ran his tongue over her clit, causing Tav to dig her nails into the bedding beneath them. He slowly and teasingly lapped over her cunt, eventually dipping his tongue inside. Tav closed her eyes and threw her head back.

“F-Fuck….” She gasped feeling his tongue slide in and out of her as he buried his head between her legs, his nose pressed against her clit. His hands cupped her ass cheeks as he lifted her up slightly, Her legs rested over his shoulders while the vampire spawn moaned into her cunt. Tav blushed darkly covering her face as she listened to the slick wet sound of his tongue plunging in and out of her.  The feeling was an indescribable pure bliss. Something she honestly had never expected to feel.

“Astarion….N-Ngh!” Tav cried out, feeling his fingers move up to play with her clit as he continued to eat her out.  Eventually he pulled back as he felt her flutter around him. He let out a breathy sigh, salvia connected his tongue to her cunt momentarily before he pulled away from her fully. 

“Astarion!” She whined, the sudden emptiness causing discomfort. 

“Turn over, my pet.” Astarion simply ordered as he gestured to her with his fingers.  Tav sighed and did as he asked without further complaint.

“Good girl. You're such an obedient little thing.” He purred, running a hand over the curve of her ass before giving it a slight pat. Tav bit her lip, this position for some reason made her groin tingle in excitement.  Astarion slid two fingers into her pussy from behind as his free hand rubbed over the growing bulge in his trousers. He huffed a bit, red eyes dazed with lust as he gazed down at her dripping womanhood. He thrusted them in and out a couple of times, eliciting some delectable little whimpers from his human lover before he dropped his pants. His cock was rock hard as precum dripped down from the tip. He pulled his fingers out and sucked them clean, moaning softly at her taste before he lined himself up with her pussy and pushed into her from behind. 

Tav arched her back and cried out pushing her ass back up against him almost instinctively. 

He gave her ass a slight smack before grabbing her hips and slowly starting to thrust. Tav was a moaning whimpering mess as his hips slapped against her ass, cock pushing in deeper, stretching and pounding her soaking wet cunt.

“Oh look at you.” Astarion clicked his tongue, “our strong fearless leader...Mmm…Completely powerless under my touch.” Astarion said in between moans as he shifts over her back, pinning her down underneath him as he continues to rut against her ass, his cock pushing even further into her pussy, the head pressing up against a particularly sensitive spot.

“Tell me pet, do you like being at my mercy, hm?  Ahh….~” Astarion moaned a little noisier than before, feeling Tav clenching tightly around his cock. “Mm! I'll take that as a yes.” He let out a pleasured sigh, snaking his hands underneath the human female to grope and squeeze her breasts all the while continuing to pump himself into her.

“Astarion…I-I feel it…” Tav gasped, repeatedly pushing her ass back against his hips. “I'm about to….A-Ahh!”  Tav suddenly came with a cry, coating his length in her juices.  Astarion smirked and kept up his thrusts. 

“Naughty girl, I never said you could finish before me.” He suddenly began to increase his speed and force, ramming himself in and out of her innards. Her rear end turned light pink from his hips, constantly slapping against it. It took a while longer but eventually she heard him let out a rather delectable sounding grunt before spilling his hot, sticky seed inside her. Astarion huffed, tongue peaking out of his mouth slightly as he panted before slowly collapsing onto Tav’s back.

~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~

The two had made good use of the nearby spring in order to clean themselves off before curling up together back on the blankets and bedroll. The night was still young the two of them were afforded a brief reprieve before continuing their indulgence of one another. Tav laid beside Astarion. Her eyes glanced over his perfect flawless form. She wondered what it would be like to pepper kisses all over him, but she felt too nervous. Far too timid to make the move herself. 

She smiled to herself a hint of a blush spreading across her cheeks as she thought over the possibilities of what else might occur tonight. 

The position of their last little tumble had put some rather intriguing ideas into her mind. It reminded her quite a bit of the ridiculous erotic novels she'd found….definitely not stolen laying around in Sharess's Caress. She had become rather fond of one whose main characters were a high elf lord and a young half-elf man. 

Tav found herself picturing herself and Astarion in one of the positions from the book and bit her lip a bit before shyly nuzzling her face into his chest. 

Astarion who'd been resting his eyes suddenly looked down feeling a slight weight against his right breast.  

“Something on your mind, dear?” Astarion smiled down at her tucking some stray hairs behind her rounded ears. He traced a finger over them playfully. The elf always found human ears rather strange in a cute sort of way. 

“Just…Thinking…” Tav said shyly before suddenly her chin was gripped gently and she was turned to look up at her cheeky vampire lover. 

“About….?” Astarion had an air of mischief in his eyes as he looked down at her expectantly. 

“I never thought it was like this, if I'm honest. S-Sex…I mean….” She clarified, “a friend of mine had once told me men only care about their own pleasure.”

“And how many men exactly has this friend been with?” Astarion asked with a raised eyebrow. He almost sounded a bit offended.

“One I think…She only ever talked about one guy she'd been with.” Tav shrugged.

“And you believed her? You are so adorably naive, you know?” Astarion tapped her nose, causing Tav to pout.

“I didn't feel like I could ask anyone else. She was my best friend.” She explained, “but I suppose you are right. She also said it hurts a lot, but you've haven't hurt me yet.” Tav smiled a bit.

“Why did you agree to sleep with me if you believed that?” Astarion asked in complete confusion. He was beginning to wonder just exactly what kind of man Tav’s friend was involved with. 

“I…I'm not entirely sure…I know it's true we could die any day, but honestly I don't know if that's really the reason I agreed.” Tav chuckled a bit and sat up. “Perhaps deep down…I just wanted you more than anything at the time…” She murmured.

“Well of course, who wouldn't want their first time to be with someone as beautiful as I?” Astarion ran a hand through his hair, playing with one of the ivory curls. 

“You are very pretty I won't lie, but a pretty face will only get you so far.” Tav hummed and relaxed nuzzling her nose back against his chest.  

“I don't think I would have agreed if you didn't have such an entertaining personality.” 

“Entertaining? And how exactly do I entertain you?” Astarion asked.

“You make me laugh.” She said simply, “you're  sassy, witty and so very dangerous. It's exciting.” Tav’s tone was honest. There was no seductive flirtations, just pure sweet admiration.

“Keep the flattery up and I might not be able to stop myself from devouring you whole.” Astarion teased before grabbing her chin and planting a hungry kiss on the human’s lips. Tav blushed a bit, her heartbeat racing as she returned it. Astarion pulled back, continuing to stare into her eyes as he caressed her cheek with a clawed index finger. “You've been a very good girl so I'll let you decide what happens next.~”

“Uh…I…” Tav turned bright red, she knew what she wanted, but the idea of asking made her rather nervous. 

“Come on, tell me what you want my sweet.~ I won't bite…. Unless you want me too.~” 

Tav wasn't sure why she felt so embarrassed about it. It was no secret Astarion had been with other men as well as women so this wouldn't be something he'd be disgusted by, but the act itself felt so taboo to speak about.

“Well…You know the thing you do with other men…?” She mumbled out, her ears as well as her cheeks were burning with embarrassment. Astarion rose an eyebrow as a mischievous smirk spread across his face. 

“Sorry darling, I didn't quite catch that. What is it you want me to do?” He asked, that infuriating smug look not wavering for a second.

“T-The thing you do with men.” She said a little louder. 

“My sweet, I have done a lot of things with a lot of men. You'll have to be more specific.” He teasingly ran a finger over her chest. 

Tav internally screamed. She could tell he was just fucking with her at this point. 

“I….I want you…to…put it in my ass…” She mumbled under her breath.

“Hmm? What was that, pet?”  Astarion kept taunting her with his knowing grin.

“I want you to fuck me in the ass!” She suddenly snapped. 

“Oh! Well, why didn't you just say so?” Astarion chuckled a bit at the end. Tav glared at him with a pout. “Oh sweetie, I'm only teasing. Besides you look so delicious when you blush.” He said before quickly flicking his tongue over her ear, causing a shiver to go down her spine as she let out a shutter. 

“I am a little surprised. Most women don't really care for this sort of thing…” He said tracing a finger around her hardening nipple, “but I'd be delighted to indulge your curiosity.” 

“Okay…”Tav nodded with a sigh of relief. 

“Now, on your belly.” He ordered. Tav slowly shifted off of him before turning to lay on her stomach. Astarion sat up before running his hand over her plump ass, giving it a slight squeeze before he moved behind her.  She heard him muttered something under his breath before suddenly his fingers were slick with grease.

Astarion spread her hole open with his clean hand before slowly sliding his index finger into her. Tav let out a noisy gasp, feeling a slight burn from his his digit pushing through her sphincter. 

“Are you alright?” He asked softly, slowly pumping his finger in and out.

“Mmm…Mhm..” Tav nodded, feeling him begin to move his finger faster. The sweet sound of her moans and the feeling of her quite literally wrapped around his finger was enough to make his cock twitch. He moved his free hand down to stoke it a bit as he pushed his finger knuckle deep inside her.

“Ooh…” She shivered before suddenly feeling him add a second digit into her ass, pumping them both in and out as he groped his hardening length.  Eventually the elf removed his fingers before greasing up his length. 

“Are you ready then?” 

“Yes…” Tav huffed and glanced back at the vampire as he lined himself up with her hole. He slowly and carefully pushed his cock up her ass. 

“O-Oh g-gods!” Tav cried out, nails digging into the blankets as he stretched her. Astarion grunted slowly bottoming out into her ass as his hands gripped her cheeks. 

“Nghh…” Astarion bit his lip, a pleased smirk threatening to form. “Mmm…How is that, love?” 

“Ahh….It's good…Oh fuck….” Tav moaned out, her eyes rolled back into her head as she felt Astarion roll his hips against her ass. 

“Excellent.” He huffed before positioning himself on top of her back, slowly sliding himself in and out. Tav pushed herself back against him as he soon began to increase his speed, balls slapping against her pussy from behind.  

Tav continued to cry out, the sensation was a strange mix of discomfort and pleasure which just increased each time he pushed in deeper. Astarion slid one of his arms underneath her chest, almost immediately toying with one of her tits.  With his free hand he gently grasped her hair, hips smacking against her ass cheeks with a satisfying clap that echoed throughout the cave. 

“Star…. Astarion….Ahh…” Tav groaned feeling the vampire spawn press his lips to her neck.

“Yes, keep going love. You're cries sound so sweet.” He said, running his tongue along her neck before gently nibbling and sucking on it.

Tav grunted and whined, pushing back against him, trying to match his pace as he pounded her ass. Astarion eventually pulled away from her neck, leaving a bright red hickey on it before he pulled Tav's hair, making her look at him.

“Kiss me, my pet.” He commanded. Tav quickly turned her head pressed her lips to his, her tongue sliding across his bottom lip before being greeted with his. Astarion shoved his tongue into her mouth eagerly. “Mmmmm…” 

~•~•~~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~

The next morning Lae’zel woke the group up bright and early. She was very eager to get on the road and search for any sign of her kin. Karlach and the others all began to take down their tents and pack away their things before Wyll took notice of Astarion’s tent still standing up.

“Has anyone seen Astarion or Tav?” He asked aloud.

“Gods, I hope he hasn't finally gone and drained her dry.” Gale said aloud.

“Oh I doubt that. It's more likely she drained him.” Shadowheart chimed in. The others looked at her in confusion before she guestured towards a path away from camp. 

Astarion walked up with a pleased smirk on his face. He was positively glowing. Meanwhile Tav limped behind him, hair messy, red marks on her neck as she let out a yawn. 

“Good..*yawn*... Morning everyone.” She rubbed her eyes before moving over towards Astarion’s stool and taking a seat. She yelped before quickly standing up, gently rubbing her bottom.

“Rough night soldier?” Karlach asked with a smirk.

“I..uh…Sorta…” Tav looked down at her feet. 

“Good gods Astarion, what did you do to her!?” Gale looked over at Astarion with suspicion.

“Nothing she didn't enjoy immensely.” Astarion smirked before glancing down at his nails. 

END

[freesidexjunkie]

tell me you're mine

f!Dark Urge OC x Enver Gortash

2036 words

Rating: E

Content: p in v; jealous and needy gortash; death/murder; definitely smut

Summary: Enver overhears some cultists making lewd remarks about his Bhaalspawn, and needs to rectify this situation.

“And what about the bhaalspawn?”

Gortash knew he shouldn't be listening. He had better things to do than listen to every bit of gossip that passed between these cultists. Nevertheless, at the mention of his co-conspirator, he found himself rooted to the spot, skulking behind the half-opened door frame like a common thug.

“You’d have to be mad to even try,” a drow woman said to the elf in front of her. “She’s likely to carve out your heart where you stand if you got too close.”

The elf snorted, puffing out his chest a bit. “I bet I could handle her,” he replied, insufferably cocky to Gortash’s ear. “She wouldn't be so scary once I was–”

Enver had heard enough, he decided. He threw open the door as he stormed into the room; a bit more dramatic than was likely necessary, but it certainly made his presence felt. The cultists’ eyes grew wide with shock as he leveled a fearsome glare at them.

“Y-your holiness!” The elf stammered out as the pair fell to their knees, eyes pointed downwards as his face colored.

“Such reverence,” he replied, the unnervingly calm in his voice not reaching his eyes. “Such respect. Tell me, do you only blaspheme against your God's Chosen in secret, then?”

“N-no, my lord!” The elf replied, head bowed low as he kneeled at Gortash’s feet. Sniveling little worm, he thought; all bravado, and no judgment. Useless.

“Oh, by all means!” He drawled, almost sweetly beneath the venom. The wicked snarl on his face was a challenge as he looked down on the man, wallowing pitifully into the dirt. “Do continue. Tell us how you would show due respect to your leaders. Enlighten us.”

“I… I–” The elf’s eyes darted around the room as he spluttered pathetically, desperately searching the faces of his compatriots for aid. But he found none; all averted their eyes from him, as if his doom might be catching.

Gortash could feel nothing but disgust for the man. He was clearly useless to their cause; he seemed to think himself above his betters, yet showed no spine when challenged on it. He could do nothing but weaken them. Gortash turned his sneer on the drow with him. “Does this man speak for you?”

“No, my lord,” she answered, her voice calm and her eyes cast down as she knelt.

He unsheathed his short sword and threw the blade at her feet, a snarl escaping his lips as he bid her, “prove it.”

The drow gave a curt nod as she lifted the blade. “Yes, my lord.” He watched as the elf’s eyes widened in terror as he looked to his former friend, a silent realization dawning on him. The sword was through his chest before he could make any plea for his worthless life; his only answer a little gasp as the blade was pulled from his chest as harshly as it had been thrust in. The room watched in silence as he collapsed to the floor, a few more pitiful gurgles before the elf quickly succumbed. The only pair of eyes not watching were the drow, still cast down reverentially as she presented Lord Gortash’s sword to him, her charge fulfilled.

He watched her, looking for any sign of weakness; but she showed none. He considered for a moment that he may punish her regardless for her complacency. But no – she showed promise, and he trusted that this would serve as a lesson for all who had watched. He took the sword back without a word, turning his back as he settled it back into the sheath. His gaze swept over the room, eyes still full of fury as he watched the onlookers busying themselves with their work, none of them eager to share the elf’s fate.

Gortash spared them one final displeased grunt as he left the room. “Clean up this mess. Give it to the gnolls, perhaps,” he called behind him as he left the room, letting the door slam behind him.

Insolent man. Presumptuous fool. He would never have been able to do any real harm to Maevris, Enver knew; the elf’s companion was right, in that she would have gutted him before he could even make an attempt. But that did not excuse his lecherous tone, his disgraceful comments about something so far above his own station.

“The bhaalspawn,” they had said. As if that was all they thought of her; some demon child of a has been god. Didn't they realize what was owed to her, as their leader? As the brilliant mastermind that she was, the fearsome assassin, the Chosen of a god, as was he? Yet they spoke of her without the fearful respect her position should inspire in them. They spoke of her as if they had any right to the parts of her that were –

Enver stopped short of finishing that thought. The ice cold shock of his own feelings on the matter doused the burning rage in his chest, if only for a moment. But a moment is all he allowed it, lest those thoughts run wild.

He felt heat creep up the back of his neck as he mounted the tower’s stairs towards the library. There had been no words spoken between them as to the… particulars of their arrangement. Was “arrangement” too crass of a word for it, he thought? Was there a better way of describing it, the stolen moments of private worship that passed between them? Would Mae have objected to the man’s words, if given the chance; might she even have reveled in them, encouraged them? And at what moment, he wondered, had that become so abhorrent a thought to him?

He would be master of his own emotions; this he swore to himself. He was a powerful leader, the Chosen of a god, soon to be a god in his own right. It made no sense to worry over himself over someone else’s affair. It made no sense to –

“Argh!” His fist slammed into the frame of a bookcase. Enver leaned against it, letting out a gravelly huff, before hearing a book being snapped shut behind him.

“Rough day?” Came Mae’s voice, lilting with amusement. She was leaning back against a desk, her angles and curves on a tantalizing display as she watched him with a smirk.

Gods dammit it all, he thought to himself as he charged towards her. In a moment, he was on her; arms gripping her tightly, one hand tangled in her hair to pull her in. He met her lips with a crushing urgency, pinning her against the desk’s edge. Mae made a surprised little laugh against his mouth, looping her arms around him.

Enver felt her pull back just slightly, only enough to pry their lips apart. “What’s gotten in–” was all he let her get out before lifting her onto the desk. Her legs opened for him as he slid one hand up the front of her thigh, underneath the hem of her skirt. She was already wet for him as he ran his thumb over the crotch of her undergarments, pressing herself into the touch with a little groan.

He told himself to be gentler in his touches as he grabbed her hips roughly. He chided his own impatience even as he tore off her smallclothes. But as much as he chastised himself, he found he couldn't help it; he needed her, needed to feel her around him, to feel her tremble at his touch. To know that she was his.

He forwent the normal pleasantries, their coy back and forth and the sweet little praises he liked to lavish upon her. Mae’s hands worked down his body agonizingly slowly, toying with the laces of his shirt collar and running over the skin of his back, her nails surely leaving little red lines in their wake. He didn’t have the patience to wait, not this time; he undid the laces on his pants hastily, freeing himself from the confines of the fabric he strained against. Enver could feel how eager she was as he guided himself into her; her little gasps, how readily she took him in, the way her breath caught as he worked his hand around her swollen bud.

“Careful,” Mae warned, a low and shaky whisper in his ear, “if you keep doing that, the whole tower will know what we’re up to.”

Enver wrapped his arms under her legs, hoisting her up and further against him. “Good,” he replied, almost a growl. “Let them.” Let them all know, he thought, biting carefully at her neck. He would let them hear his name cried from her lips, let them see the sweet little marks he would leave on her skin. He was keen to remind of his many uses, his well honed skills to be put to use. The various ways he could bring forth her ecstasy as no one else could. He thrust into her again, harder, as he tugged a fistful of her hair to better expose her neck, earning a delicious moan from deep within her chest to echo off of the stone walls around them.

“Fuck,” she rasped, face turned upwards as she panted, “Enver, I… I…”

He pulled her closer to him again, gripping her ass and encircling her waist as he murmured something unintelligible into her jaw.

Mae turned back towards him to speak into his ear. “What was that?” She asked quietly, every word an effort against the blissful feeling spreading across her body.

He pulled his face away to look into her eyes, his eyes dark with lust as he kept a slow and deliberate rhythm pounding into her. “Tell me you're mine,” he said, more clearly this time. “Tell me that you are mine and mine alone. That if anyone else dared to lay a finger on you, you would want me to tear them limb from limb. That no one else can have you but me.”

Mae let out a breathless little chuckle as she grinned up at him. Looping her arms around his neck, she pulled him in for a long, needy, passionate kiss as she continued to buck against him. Without pulling away, she spoke with a grin against his lips, “of course, darling.”

“Say it,” he said, almost a plea as he neared his climax.

“I’m yours, Enver,” she said, her voice coming undone as she came closer to the edge. “All yours.”

And it was that that did him in. He felt himself reach his end as he snaked his arms around her back and up behind her shoulders, burying his face into her neck as he spilled inside of her. She cried out his name as she came with him, surely loud enough to be heard throughout the floor. It was a proclamation to any that would dare to look at her: his.

Maevris was running her fingers gently through his hair and across his back. She planted small kisses to his temple as he shuddered against her, breathing heavily into her shoulder, still buried inside of her. “Do you feel better now, love?” She asked with a wilting playfulness.

He let out a short laugh as he straightened himself up, pulling out of her and pressing a last kiss to the side of her neck. “Of course, my dear,” he said, arms still circling her waist as he leaned back to look at her.

“Good,” she replied, running a hand up his chest with a smirk. “You should clean yourself up, darling. I believe we’re late for a meeting with the General.”

She met his eyes with a pleased little smile. Wicked thing. Sinfully gorgeous, wicked woman. “Oh no,” he answered with a devilish grin as he wrapped her legs around his waist and lifted. “No, pet. We are going upstairs, so I can show you just how mine you are.”

Mae acquiesced quite willingly, all kisses and giggles as she relished in teasing him all the way up the stairs. She was his, he repeated to himself. All his. Only his. And the thought entered his mind more than once, that he was entirely hers.

[monstersandmaw]

Male gnoll x gn reader (nsfw)

Disclaimer which I’m including in all my works after plagiarism and theft has taken place: I do not give my consent for my works to be used, copied, published, or posted anywhere. They are copyrighted and belong to me. 

As promised, the modern gnoll story is here!

Content: insecure, squishy, gender and body neutral reader; praise kink from gnoll boy if you squint; penetrative sex, knotting.

There's also very fleeting mention of a young, terminally ill patient passing off-screen. If you want to skip that entirely, skip from: "Halfway through the third time you encountered him there though, he got a call on his phone and his whole demeanour changed." to the paragraph beginning: "Three days later, and you’d been to the gym every day in the hopes of catching him, you hadn’t seen him."

Wordcount: 6934

You stared at the weights rack and felt a bead of sweat roll down your spine that had nothing to do with your previous sets.

This would be the heaviest you’d ever attempted to chest press, and while it might not be much by some people’s standards — that half-orc last week had really put you off your stride by snorting at you, but we can’t all be built like brick fucking walls, can we? — it was more than you’d tried so far. But you were ready. You just… needed someone to spot for you. Just in case. Safety first, and all that.

But the only people in the weights section were the kind of people who, through no real fault of their own, you tended to find nauseatingly intimidating. Like that troll who could probably bench press one of you in each hand. Or that werewolf who was fully shifted and currently on her hundredth(?) chin-up on the bars. Or that gnoll. He’d been doing slow, measured bicep curls for the past five minutes and you’d been trying not to stare at him. Most male gnolls were a bit smaller than their female counterparts, and tended to be less aggressive and competitive in the gym, but this guy was huge.

You must have looked a little too long though, because his dark, rounded ear twitched and he turned his head to look at you. Instead of glaring at you, he offered you a wide, friendly grin that showed off his massive, chunky teeth and made you a bit weak at the knees. Always good to go weak at the joints when you were about to attempt a personal best in the weights section at the gym…

Fuck.

“You ok?” he asked, setting down a dumbbell that was heavy enough to double as a battleship anchor, and you swallowed.

Now or never.

“I…” you croaked and cleared your throat, looking down at the bench and back up at him.

“You want someone to spot for you?” he asked, stepping a little closer. His paws were massive and while he had clothes on — black gym shorts and a big, baggy, white tank top — he wore no shoes. His claws flexed as his dark, smoky brown pads spread to take his weight, and you swallowed again. He had really adorable freckle-like spots up his shaggy legs too.

“If you wouldn’t mind?” you finally managed to squeak.

At that, he beamed at you and gave a gnollish giggle that seemed genuinely pleased. “Happy to.”

“Thanks,” you mumbled, and took a breath for courage. No going back now.

You lay down on the bench and he came to stand behind the rack. His big, clawed hands hooked under the bar but he didn't take any of its weight as you adjusted your grip and got settled, and prepared to lift it free. He loomed over you, his face serious with concentration. It was a comfort to know he was focused on the task, not gawping around at the other gym-goers. The future integrity of your chest and ribs depended on his concentration if your arms failed you, after all. You had no doubts about his strength though. He really was massive.

Getting your breathing under control, you shoved carefully upwards, and he grinned as you took its weight and began your reps. After five, you felt your arms start to burn, but you pushed on towards ten.

At nine, your muscles shuddered in complaint.

“You’ve got this,” he said in a low, quiet rumble, and it spurred you on to do the last one. You hooked it back in place and met his dark brown eyes. “Nailed it,” he grinned, all teeth and joy. “I reckon you can go up another five kilograms…”

“I’m not sure,” you replied, sitting up carefully and swinging your feet off to one side. The idea of making it heavier seemed overwhelming.

“I’ll spot you again, don’t worry,” he said, reaching for a couple of the smallest weight plates from the rack and slotting them easily onto the end of your bar. “But you definitely had some in the tank. Take a minute, have a drink, and go again.”

His quiet, easy conviction was enviable, but it sparked something in you that had been dormant for a long time. Or maybe it had been smothered into dormancy. Either way, it felt a lot like the echo of self-confidence, though the feeling was unfamiliar these days.

When you set down your water bottle and paused to let your muscles relax after the first set of reps, your eye was caught by a wiry looking goblin doing weighted squats on the far side of the room. She had iron grey hair and looked to be in her sixties or seventies, and you felt the heat of shame flood your cheeks when you realised she was lifting more than you could, at half your height and a fraction of your body-weight.

Seeing where you were looking, the gnoll gave a little snicker and said, “Oh boy, don’t compare yourself to Rose, friend. I’ve seen her outlast full-grown orcs in friendly pull-up competitions, and she can plank for an hour without breaking a sweat. Goblins are made of steel, I swear. Focus on your own journey.”

You laughed, feeling stupidly grateful to him for his kind reassurance.

“Come on. Give it a go?” he said, and you nodded and lay back. “I’ll be here. I won’t let you hurt yourself,” he added.

It was a struggle, but you made it to five before you needed a pause, and he hooked his rough-padded fingers under the bar and took the weight for a second.

“Breathe, and then just five more.”

Somehow when he said it like that, it didn’t seem so bad.

Things got tricky at eight, but you gritted your teeth and pushed through, and when you hit ten and he took it from you, your arms felt like wet noodles, but you’d done it.

“Alright!” he exclaimed as you sat up and cast him a sidelong look. He offered his paw for a high-five, and, embarrassed by his enthusiasm for you, you answered it. The pads of his paws were rough and warm, and his entire hand almost engulfed yours. When you lowered your gaze again, you could just see his little tail wagging back and forth and that finally brought a huge smile to your face. How long had it been since someone was genuinely excited for your achievements?

“Thank you,” you mumbled, your voice cracking a bit. “That was really kind of you. I’m sorry I interrupted your workout.”

“Not at all,” he smiled. “Happy to help, and you smashed it! I’ll leave you to get on, but shout if you need me to spot for you again.”

“Thanks,” you said, but your shyness returned, and you didn’t trouble him again that session.

Three days later, you were back in the gym with your muscles mostly recovered. On the ground floor of the building, there was a huge swimming pool and as you passed the viewing window you could see a couple of humans and a few orcs and perhaps an elf doing serious, focused laps in the swimming lanes, barely making a splash as they powered through the water. This whole ‘fitness drive’ thing was still pretty new to you, and just walking up the stairs into the upper level of the gym where the machines and weights were sparked the same nauseous anxiety in the pit of your stomach that you always experienced at the thought of going to a public gym. You didn’t look like someone who belonged here, with soft edges and extra weight in places it wasn’t conventionally attractive for humans to carry it, and while you weren’t really here to please other people, you were trying to take better care of yourself lately and that, unfortunately, involved exercise.

Your eyes scanned the space and you’d have been lying if you weren’t searching for a flash of honey-coloured fur. There was a large group of orcs messing around in the weights section, so you bailed and headed blindly for the nearest cardio machine, heart pounding in a way that made you want to throw up.

“Guess I’m running today,” you muttered under your breath as you stepped automatically up onto the treadmill. Panic had made you go to this one, and you thought you’d probably look even more stupid if you changed your mind now.

After an overly-long warm-up walk, you cranked it to something manageable and felt your body complain already. You made it to about one kilometre before you had to stop. Deciding to pretend you’d always intended to use it merely as a way to loosen up, you hit the ‘stop’ button and ignored its friendly advice to do a cool down, grabbing your water bottle from the holder and turning around to see if there was enough room in the weights area for you to slink in and do a few reps.

And there, looking at you across the room, was the gnoll from before.

Your heart flip-flopped in your chest, first with delight and then with horror as you realised he must have seen you lumbering away on the treadmill. Fuck.

But when he met your eye, he grinned, showing all his teeth, and he waved. You smiled back, and wove your way through the bristling array of cardio machines to join him.

“Hey,” he said, scratching behind one large ear with his right paw. “I wasn’t sure if you were a regular… I kind of thought I might never see you again.”

“No, I’m usually wheezing away in a corner at around this time every few days,” you snorted.

He didn’t laugh at your self-deprecating humour though, and instead turned his muzzle towards the weights. “You need someone to spot for you again?”

You bit your lip. “Yeah, I guess. You can be my cheerleader again too if you like,” you added with a spur-of-the-moment burst of bravery.

“Gladly,” he giggled, tail wagging back and forth. “You wanna do a few warm up rounds first? I just got here, so I’m kind of cold anyway.”

As before, when you were ready, he came over and stood at the head of the bench, hands ready to catch the bar. It was harder to concentrate this time round, with him looming over you. He had to be nearly seven feet tall, though he had that distinctive hunch that gnolls’ unique biology lent to their kind where werewolves were more upright.

When he took the bar from you at the end of your first set of reps, his fingers brushed yours and you nearly gasped at how velvet-soft his fur was. “Thank you,” you said, and as you sat up to take your short break, you introduced yourself by name.

“I’m Cade,” he replied, and stuck out his hand for you to shake.

Conscious that your palms were probably super sweaty, you tried not to flush hot and make it even worse, and you slid your hand into his. Again, the size of him was striking, and you felt something in your core tighten and start to tingle at the sight of it, let alone the feel of his paw flexing around your hand. His claws were dark and neatly rounded and you wondered what he did for a living. Most gnolls — not that you knew any personally — seemed to have active, outdoorsy jobs, but there was something about him that made you curious.

“Ready for round two?” he asked, and you got back to it with a shy smile. “Ah, come on. It’s not that bad, is it? You might even learn to love it soon.”

“It’s better with company,” you admitted as you took the weight of the bar and looked up just in time to watch his face go from serious to delighted at the compliment. “Not sure I’ll ever come to love it though. Not the way you seem to.”

He grinned and giggled gnollishly — the sound high and bright and a little silly coming from someone so intimidatingly built — and you couldn’t help the way your heart felt a little lighter and your body a little more energised. “I did consider changing careers to become a personal trainer for a while,” he said while you started to count your second set.

“Oh?” You didn’t have the breath to ask anything more articulate, but he didn’t seem to mind.

“Mm. I just enjoy helping people out, I guess.”

“What do you do now for work?” you asked in a bit of a garbled rush between reps six and seven.

“I’m a paediatric nurse,” he said, and you nearly dropped the bar on your chest. He reached down and snatched it before it had even dropped an inch, and he shot you a look. “Don’t worry, I’m used to that reaction,” he said with a wink. “I was expecting it.”

“Sorry,” you said. Jeez, what a charmer. “I just… I wouldn’t have thought… you know… I’m sorry.”

“Eh, it’s fine,” he said. “Come on, get to ten and I’ll tell you the rest.”

You pushed through the last three and he took the bar and rested it on its hooks, allowing you to sit up with thrumming muscles in your shoulders and arms. You stretched out and twisted your neck to look up at him from your seat on the bench.

“We have a bad reputation still,” he sighed, “But actually, traditionally, male gnolls are the caretakers in our clans. Historically, the females did all the fighting and protecting, and we raised the cubs and taught them the basics before they went on to train with the females.” He shot you a cheeky look and added, “Statistically, male gnolls are the least likely of almost all species to be aggressive, so despite appearances, we make perfect caretakers. The kids at the hospital love me, once they get past the teeth and the size.”

“I can see why,” you said faintly.

Cade pulled a wide smile and eyed the bar. “Go for three sets this time?”

You did, and when you were done, you thanked him, and then headed to grab a kettle bell to do some other exercises. If both of you kept sneaking glances at each other for the rest of your session, well, at least it wasn’t just you.

Halfway through the third time you encountered him there though, he got a call on his phone and his whole demeanour changed. You’d been doing some lower-weight dead lifts, and as you set the bar down on the mat you watched all the joy bleed out of him; his tail bristled high and stiff, his ears swivelled back almost flat against his head, and his big brown eyes went wide with distress.

“Shit, now?” he hissed, turning away from you. “Fuck. Ok, I’ll be there as soon as I can. No, don’t worry about it. Thanks for telling me. Ok, I’ll see you soon.”

He hung up, took a deep breath, and then slowly looked over his shoulder at you. “I… I have to go. I’m sorry. Don’t try any more without someone to spot for you, ok?”

You nodded. “You alright?”

He bit his lip and shook his head. “No, not really. One of my patients is… Uh… Yeah. Not long left, apparently.”

“Oh shit, Cade,” you said, crossing to him. You laid your hand on his fluffy forearm and squeezed the solid muscle beneath your fingers. He seemed to relax just a fraction at that. “You need someone to give you a lift to the hospital? My car’s outside.”

Again, he bit his lip and then nodded. “You wouldn’t mind? I was gonna get the bus.”

You shook your head. “Of course not. Let’s go.”

He was mostly silent for the journey, his knee bouncing as he sat crammed into in the front of your car, but when you approached the main entrance to the hospital, he said, “You can just use the drop-off at the front. Thank you again. I’ll… I’ll see you around, ok?”

You nodded and reached for his arm again. “Take care of yourself.”

He smiled, gave a low rumbling noise that you’d never heard him make before, and then climbed out and strode into the hospital without a backward glance. You looked down at the seat and found a fair few golden hairs stuck to the fabric, and didn’t have the heart to brush them away.

Three days later, and you’d been to the gym every day in the hopes of catching him, you hadn’t seen him. Your mood was decidedly flat as you stepped out into the fresh night air and tried to plaster on a smile when your best friend uncoiled his muscular, python’s tail from the back of the taxi that was waiting at the curb and flung his arms around you. His dark brown skin had a pearlescent shimmer to it and his long, thick brown hair was plaited into a thick braid that hung down his spine. He wore a glittery, black shirt studded with a rainbow of rhinestones that matched the iridescent gleam that seemed to hover over his snake’s tail too, and he had the most exquisitely neat makeup on that you’d ever seen.

“Gods, Mal, you look incredible,” you wheezed as he hugged you.

“You look good too, sweetheart,” he grinned back. “Any sign of your delicious little puppy at the gym today? No, of course not. If there had been, you wouldn’t looked like a kicked puppy yourself. Come on. It’s my birthday. You’re not allowed to mope,” he said, and he practically bundled you into the back of the taxi before going round to the other side and piling in beside you.

He gave the driver the name of the club, and the car set off.

“There’ll be so many beautiful people there tonight, you’ll forget all about this gnoll of yours, I swear,” he practically purred in your ear, and you tried to smile.

“Happy birthday, by the way,” you said, and you drew an envelope from your clutch and handed it to him.

He frowned. “What’s this? We don’t do cards or presents anymore, sweetie,” he scowled, but he did look secretly pleased.

“Couldn’t resist this one,” you shrugged.

The card was nothing very special, just a lame joke about not throwing a hissy fit on your birthday, but it predictably made Mal groan and roll his eyes. “Really, darling? Didn’t we get over the reptile jokes in kindergarten?”

You did manage to muster a heartfelt smirk at that, and waved your hand. “I couldn’t resist,” you said again.

“You’re awful. I love you so much,” he laughed, and tugged you into a sideways hug in his arms. “You’re the only person I tolerate this kind of shit from, you know that?”

“Yeah,” you smiled.

For a long moment, Mal held you and then he let you go and sighed softly. “I want you to be happy, you know?” he said. “You’ve been, like… ‘background miserable’ for ages.”

“I’ll try,” you said. It had been easier until Cade had vanished.

The club was packed already, but Mal dragged you to the front of the line and the two of you were admitted like celebrities and shown to the VIP area of the club. Perks of being with the brother of the owner, you supposed. Yves came over to greet you and his brother and to wish Mal a happy birthday. His present, it turned out, was unlimited drinks for the two of you all night.

For an hour, you and Mal chatted and drank leisurely, and watched the people out on the dance floor that was slightly below your booth, but just as Mal slithered with enviable elegance off the bench and started to make his way towards the dance floor, dragging you along with him, you caught sight of the familiar shape of a gnoll’s ears and froze so abruptly that your hands were torn from Mal’s grip.

“What, Sweets?”

You frowned, trying to make out the figure that was across the space, apparently also being dragged by his friends onto the floor. It was him. It was Cade. You had to laugh, and just as you did, he looked up.

His jaw dropped and he fell utterly still as well, then he laughed and shook his head.

“No way,” Mal breathed, now leaning in to hiss in your ear. “That’s him?”

“Yeah,” you said, and as Cade joined you, Mal — the cheeky shit that he was — gave you a solid shove between your shoulder blades.

You stumbled forwards and Cade shot his hands out to catch you before you planted face-first onto the dance floor. You whipped around the moment he had steadied you, and shot Mal the most venomous glare you could, and then turned back to Cade. “Thanks,” you yelled above the music. “My meddling best friend isn’t exactly known for his subtlety.”

“It’s ok,” Cade chuckled. “It’s good to see you. Sorry I haven’t made it to the gym lately. You find someone to spot for you?”

You shook your head and realised you were still holding his forearms. He hadn’t let go either, so neither did you. “How are you doing? I was worried about you when I didn’t see you after… you know…”

He bowed his head in understanding. “I’m sorry. I didn’t think you’d worry about me, if I’m honest. I’m good. It wasn’t entirely unexpected, even if it was still really sad. It’s part of the job sometimes though. It’s… It’s not my first. But I’m not here to mope.”

“Why are you here then?” you asked, squeezing his forearm gently as someone knocked into you from the side. “You look about as comfortable as I am in places like this…”

His ears were pricked as far forward as they could go, straining like satellite dishes to catch your words above the thundering music, and the urge to make an inhuman squeak rose up your throat like a physical presence. For someone so huge and muscular, he had no right to look so heartbreakingly cute.

“My friends’ house purchase went through so they decided to celebrate and drag me out with them. You?”

“Mal's birthday. His brother owns the club, so we’ve had free drinks for the night.”

“Nice,” Cade laughed. “You want to dance?”

You did, but it wasn’t something you were any good at. Then again, looking around you, there weren’t many you’d have said were actually dancing. Shyly, you managed a nod, and he grinned at you again, and held out both paws. You slid your hands into them and he exhaled, his chest falling noticeably.

“What?”

“You’re so small,” he said. “I… I’m so afraid I’m going to crush you all the time.”

“You won’t,” you smiled, and stepped even closer to him. Close enough to smell the soft musk that rose from his fur. Close enough to see the lights reflected in his coffee-dark eyes and watch the way the pale whiskers on his dark muzzle splayed wide with his anticipation. In the lights you noticed that the white trim of fur along the outer edge of his ears looked like a fine line of silver. “You’re really beautiful, Cade,” you whispered, certain that the music would drown your words, but he pulled his dark lips back in a broad grin and dipped his head shyly.

He turned you in his arms so that your back was to his chest and he stepped a little closer, moving his hands to your waist. You tried to fight the self-consciousness that roared to life like a wildfire in your mind, and when he felt you tense, he leaned down and murmured in your ear, “Is this alright?”

You nodded and leaned back into him, looking up at his pale throat and chest. It was a surprisingly familiar view by now after your sessions in the gym. He was wearing loose jeans that ended at the knee, the way many non-humans did, and he had a black t-shirt on that fitted his muscular frame beautifully. His red-gold mane melted into the dark fur of his ears and the creamy underside of his chin and neck, and you wanted to melt against him and have him hold you forever.

“Yes,” you exhaled. “It’s just been a while, that’s all.”

“We can go however slow you like, but you should know I like you,” he said in a low, inviting rumble. He pressed his cold nose carefully against your cheek and then nuzzled you with his jaw. “A lot. Gods, you smell amazing,” he blurted, as if he couldn't help himself.

That self-conscious heat evolved into something entirely different, and pure want coursed through you instead. You ached again and your body seemed to prickle all over with desire.

His hands drifted a fraction lower, to frame your hips, and his fingers dug into your soft flesh. Above the music you heard him give a long, deep lowing sound; primal and visceral and honest in its appreciation, and it made you shiver.

You lost track of time as you danced together. It wasn’t so much ‘dancing’ as ‘sharing the same space and touching wherever you could both get away with it before it became completely indecent’.

At one point, when you’d turned to face him again, someone nudged into you from behind and a hand wandered over your back, and you flinched closer to Cade. He pulled his lips back and showed all his teeth, and the human who had wandered too close to your corner of paradise shied away with hands raised.

“Didn’t take you for the jealous type,” you said, and Cade growled at you instead.

“I’m not,” he said. “But I am protective. If you want to leave here with someone else tonight instead of me, I won’t stop you.”

“I don’t want to,” you said, placing your hand on the centre of his chest. “I’m not sure I’m ready to go home with you tonight either, but I do want your number and I do want to see you again.”

He smiled, and drew his phone from his back pocket. He twitched his muzzle towards the edge of the dance floor and then offered you his palm, leading you through the jostling crowd towards a quieter spot and shielding you with the bulk of his body when you had to force your way through the crush. You exchanged numbers, and then he looked over your shoulder and said, “Your friend is coming over.”

You turned to find Mal easing his way around the edge of the dance floor. He was moving slowly, carefully, the way he did when he was very drunk and trying not to show it. “Ah, man, I’ll have to get him home safely,” you sighed. “I guess this is goodbye for now.”

Cade nodded. “I’ll see you both to a cab if you like.”

“You are protective,” you chuckled.

“I’m not hearing a ‘no’.”

“No, you’re not,” you smiled. “If you like, you can get on the other side of Mal and see that he doesn’t slither off somewhere.”

The two of you wrangled a very curious and very obvious Mal into the back of a cab, and Cade came to stand with his hands on your waist. “Can I kiss you?” he asked, his ears tilted back in a perfect display of meek shyness.

“Yes,” you exhaled.

He lowered his head and brought his muzzle to your lips. His mouth was soft against yours and he pressed his lips against you and then let the very tip of his tongue lave over your lips while his rough hands rose to cup your jawline and hold your face delicately. Cade didn’t spend long kissing you, since it was evident that this was a human gesture for which his body was not really built, but he did move to nuzzle your cheek with the velvet fur of his muzzle before stepping back and breathing out a long sigh.

Before he could say anything sweet or romantic, Mal opened the door and half his tail spilled back out onto the tarmac, and he cursed. “Fuck. I just wanted to say to hurry the fuck up because I’m cold and drunk and I don’t want to sit the back of this cab any longer than I have to,” he slurred, his forked tongue thick with drink. “Sorry,” he tacked on a little late.

Cade chuckled and helped you tuck Mal’s python tail back into the car for a second time, and you shook your head. “I’m so sorry,” you said, and squeezed his arm. “I’ll see you at the gym? And I’ll text you.”

He nodded, and you got in to the taxi next to Mal and shot him a flat look. “That was not cool,” you said. “You only get a free pass because it’s your birthday.”

And with that, you told the driver his address, and then, when Mal was safely inside and a little more sober, you headed home.

A text was waiting from Cade but you saved it for when you were finally ready for bed, and as you lay there in the dark, you opened your messages with a little trepidation.

>> You looked so beautiful tonight. I was *this* close to not going out tonight, but I’m so glad I did. I hope you got back ok and that the birthday boy isn’t going to suffer too much. I’ll be at the gym tomorrow. Perhaps we can grab a coffee somewhere afterwards if you’re going to be around? Night, and sleep well. C x <<

You read it through four times before you replied, and after that, you saw each other every day for a fortnight solid.

It started with coffee after the gym and then progressed to drinks, and then drinks and a snack, and then dinner, and then dinner and a movie, and then dinner and the same movie again because there was nothing else on that you wanted to watch, and then dinner and a stroll along the riverbank while the city lights twinkled around you. Finally, after two weeks of meeting every day, he took your hands in his and kissed you silly on one of the bridges over the river.

He nuzzled you afterwards and let out all these delicious, gnollish noises that made your heart skip and dance and skitter around like a trapped bird in your ribcage.

“I want you,” you gasped as he leaned you back a little way and closed his mouth around your neck, raking his teeth oh so gently across your skin. He froze, and then drew back.

“You mean it?” he asked in an equally soft voice. His dark eyes were huge and his ears frankly adorable as they swivelled first back against his head in uncertainty and then pricked forwards in undeniable hope. His tail rose high and fluffy behind him and you giggled softly.

“Yes, I mean it,” you laughed. “I want you.”

“Now?”

“Not ‘now on this bridge’,” you snorted. “Now as in tonight. Now as in take me home.”

“Yours or mine?”

“Whose is closer?” you asked in a decidedly hoarse voice.

He paused. “Mine, probably.”

“Then let’s go there.”

He held your hand all the way there, and stopped at least five more times to nuzzle you and kiss you.

You’d been to his a couple of times before during your whirlwind courtship, but you’d only cuddled on the sofa while eating popcorn and watching reruns of your favourite shows. This time, you didn't bother with the sofa.

You kicked off your shoes at the door and he backed you towards the bedroom, growling and making those delicious, low-frequency lowing sounds in a constant, rumbling song. He loomed over you, but you grinned up at him and tugged at the lower hem of his black t-shirt.

He tore it off over his head to reveal the coarse, ivory fur of his chest and throat, and you reached for him, watching as your fingers disappeared into it. He growled — actually growled — when you scrunched your fingers and tugged experimentally, and you looked up at him again. He was panting softly, eyes half-lidded with his muzzle tilted upwards a fraction.

“Bed. Now,” you said in an unusually assertive voice.

Cade gasped and then simply picked you up by the hips. You looped your legs around his middle and let him carry you into his bedroom, where he deposited you carefully onto the bed and leaned down over you. It didn’t take you long to discard your clothes and he stared at you in wonder when you lay back again.

He was hard and as he rutted through his jeans against your thigh, you arched your back off the bed and moaned. “Now, Cade. Please.”

You ached all over and you’d never been this turned on in all your life. Every nerve ending seemed to have been dialled up to eleven and every time his rough paws skimmed over your skin, you gasped and jerked and groaned.

“So sensitive,” he purred, leaning back to undo his jeans and cast them aside. His boxers came next, and you tried not to stare at the size of him. You hoped you could take him.

He knelt between your legs and gently bit and mouthed his way up your inner thighs before closing his mouth over you and letting his tongue savour you. It should have been unnerving to have the most powerful jaws of almost any creature on land so close to where you were most delicate, but it sent a thrill up your spine instead. He moved his head between your legs and you let your hand rest between his ears, guiding his pace and taming his ardour a little.

Cade drew back, his eyes glassy and his muzzle wet with a combination of your arousal and his drool, and he rasped, “You taste incredible.”

“I want to come with you inside me,” you moaned. “I want you to knot me, Cade.”

His eyes fluttered and rolled at that and he gripped his cock in one hand as though trying to stave off his own orgasm already. “Fuck,” he grunted. “Fuck, that’s about the hottest thing you could have said to me. I’m really not gonna last long now. Oh fuck, I can already feel —”

“Cade, inside me. Now.”

“You’re sure?”

“Cade…” There was a growl to your voice too.

His cock was leaking all over his hand, all over the back of his fingers, and he wasn’t even working himself. You weren’t going to need any extra help to ease him inside you, but you were going to need him to take it gently.

“Slowly,” you warned as he lined himself up. He nodded, looking nervous and earnest.

The tip of his cock nudged inside you and you groaned and lay back, enjoying the huge stretch of him. Cade, meanwhile, bit back a curse and began to shake all over.

“I can’t,” he gasped. “Please… I…”

“Keep going,” you said, sounding gloriously winded already and he was only a little way inside you. “Don’t stop.”

The gnoll let out a long, lowing groan and then braced himself on both arms. You drew your knees up to help him and he began to pant again. “Fuck,” he cursed as he eased himself further inside you. “Oh fuck, oh fuck, I can’t I’m… I’m going to come… fuck, you’re tight. Oh fuck, beautiful, I can’t…”

“Yes you can,” you crooned, though the seduction in your voice was a little strangled by the intensity of the stretch as he eased almost all the way into you. “You can wait for me, I know you can. You’re so good; you’re so kind, Cade. You’re going to make this amazing for me, I know you are…”

At the string of praise, his heavy jaws parted to show all his thick, sharp teeth and he began to shake with the effort of not plunging into you in a single stroke until finally, finally, he was seated inside you to the hilt of his cock.

“See?” you said, reaching for the ruff around his neck and threading your fingers into the depths of the soft fur.

He keened and began to rock his hips. “Please… Please can I move now?”

“Yes, Cade. Let me feel all of you inside me.”

What began as a slow, careful slide of his huge cock inside you hastened to a desperate rhythm in minutes. His hips snapped against yours and you felt the weight of his balls as they rocked against you with each thrust. Cade was whining with each stroke, and you realised that the delicious stretch was growing, and each time he withdrew, it was a little less far.

“You’re going to knot me, aren’t you?” you gasped, drawing your knees up even further so that he hit you just-so with the tip of his cock at the apex of each desperate thrust.

“Mmnn,” he whimpered. “Fuck. I’m so close. You’re so gorgeous. Been thinking about this since… since we danced. Gods, I wanted to fuck you that night. Came all over myself when I got home. Popped a knot and everything, oh fuck, oh fuck you’re so tight I’m going to come, I’m so close, I’m going to come, can I come? Please let me come, beautiful, please let me fill you —”

His babbling, rambling pleas devolved into another gnollish low and he threw his head back, picking up the desperate pace. His hands grabbed your hips and his claws pricked your skin as he pulled you further onto his growing knot with every thrust. Delirious pleasure coursed through you and you barely had the presence of mind left to give him the permission he clearly craved.

“Yes, come for me,” you slurred. “Come inside me, Cade. Fill me —”

With a roar, his hips snapped against yours one last time and his whole body locked up. His lips pulled back from his huge teeth into a rictus of ecstasy and his eyes rolled as he came in huge, shuddering waves, lost to the pleasure of your body as his knot finally swelled to fill you and the sensation of it tipped you over the edge as well. As your body clenched around him, he cursed again and tugged you somehow even further onto his knot. His hips spasmed against you and you could feel him emptying himself into you in waves.

It was a long time before he stopped coming, and even with his knot plugging you tight, you felt some of his come start to leak out around you already, spilling down your thighs and onto the sheet. “Fuck,” he hissed again, and his body went suddenly slack, though his chest was still heaving for breath.

He fell forwards over you and braced himself at the last second on his forearms. You lowered your legs and he grunted as the movement jolted his over-sensitive knot, but you stayed there for a long time.

Gradually, your breathing settled into the same rhythm and your heartbeats slowed, and a leaden satisfaction descended into your whole body. You felt full, and cherished as he held you.

You lost track of time as you lay there together, but finally his knot receded and you felt a lot more of his come start to slide down your thighs. “Making a mess,” you mumbled from where you were half-buried by the soft fur near his ear.

“Mmph.”

“If you’re expecting me to have put on enough muscle to chest press you off me, you’re sorely mistaken,” you quipped, and to your joy, he gave a delighted, gnollish giggle and lifted his head enough to regard you with his slightly unfocused, dark brown eyes.

“You’re really something,” he said, and he let his pink tongue just grace the tip of your nose. “You sore? You want me to run you a bath?”

“Oof, yes please,” you smiled. No one had ever offered to do that for you after sex, and you were indeed a little sore from where he’d stretched you further than anyone ever had.

He lifted himself off you carefully, withdrawing from you and giving a little grunt as his softening cock slid free. He sat back on his haunches and ran his thumbs over the curve of your thighs, staring at where you knew you were probably gaping a bit. It was hard not to feel embarrassment until he murmured, “You’re exquisite.”

Cade leaned over you and fondly raked his upper and lower teeth over the soft flesh of your thigh before laving his tongue over your skin and then finally standing on shaky legs. “Been a while since I came like that,” he admitted shyly as he staggered towards the door. “Think I might skip leg day tomorrow and just chill out here.”

“I’ll join you,” you said. “I may never regain feeling in my legs.”

“I’ll carry you around anyway,” he grinned as he left and went to run the bath.

True to his word, Cade did carry you around his apartment the next day, and your feet barely touched the ground from the moment you woke to the moment you fell asleep in his bed for the second night in a row.

You weren’t exactly complaining though. It was heaven.

__

I hope you enjoyed it, and I hope you’ll consider reblogging as well as leaving a like. Take care of yourselves, and I hope you have a lovely day/night wherever you are, and whenever you read this.

| Masterlist | Ko-fi (tip jar)

[static-sulker]

I might maybe possibly be thinking of a modern fantasy apartment AU with the main crew. All of them being stupid ass magical roommates without tadpoles...Just letting them be happy.

Also my Tav is in there because...yeah. His name is Silk and he is such a silly guy ridden with the 'tism. Drow Warlock who sees the good in everything... Such a...A yeah...

Little notes i've been conjuring about this...

Gale and Wyll made a chore chart in the kitchen, with little magnets for each person. Astarion regularly will switch his magnet in the middle of the night just so he doesn't have to do the fucking dishes and EVERYBODY knows besides Gale and Wyll. Wyll is on the fence about it, but Gale wholeheartedly believes when Astarion lies through his teeth about never having done it.

Karlach and Halsin go on grocery runs in the mornings. Karlach goes for the running part, while Halsin comes along for the run as well as to stop Karlach from buying the most horrendous shit. The one time she went alone very early in the houses lifespan, Karlach bought like 3 bags of go-gurt, about 50 dollars worth of cheap booze, and a big piece of raw steak to cook. She burnt said steak. But she's trying now, at least.

The team will take turns every now and then to get Astarion blood from themselves as it gives Astarion a lot more energy then normal settling blood. BUT they do have "blood bags" that they set up in the kitchen fridge whenever they know nobody with the right blood is gonna be available to give him blood if he needs it. They TOTALLY get it by legal means and it TOTALLY doesn't melt Astarions heart that they try so hard to help him.

Silk finds a stray dog in the alleys of their building one day when they went out to work (they do freelance art with their magic for like startups, it's fun). After casting "speak with animals" they find out this dog, Scratch, is waiting for his owner to return. His owner was killed out by some gnoll gang downtown. When they come back from work later in the evening, they find Scratch again, still waiting. Long story short, Silk adopts scratch in their very strict "no pets" rule of an apartment. And don't get me STARTED on the owlbear cub. Lae'zel and Halsin were out, originally to get some spare lightbulbs and tools for the apartment and find the little critter getting chase by some goblins in some backalley parking lot. Lae'zel plans to ignore the thing, but Halsin assists the cub. Once done, they plan to leave, before the cub begins to follow them home. Halsin names the cub "Vauva" and Lae'zel soon becomes SO attached.

They have presentation nights, where everybody makes slideshows about literally anything. Last week, Gale made one about the conflicts of archmages and the idea of apprentices. Karlach then made a tier list on the worst monsters ever documented, Lae'zel helped with that one. Shadowheart made this whole discussion over her favorite and least favorite teas (she fuckin' hates green tea for like no reason). Wyll made one on Baldurs Gate history. Astarion made a smash or pass list of all of the political leaders in Baldurs Gate. Silk made a presentation on the weirdest underdark myths and rumors they have heard on their time above ground. Halsin presented (well more like persuaded) on getting a new herb for their kitchens row of herbs and spices set on the windowsill. They have too many and he got like 5 minutes of stand time before Karlach kicked him off.

Lae'zel hate-cleans when shes mad at somebody in the apartment. Basically, she cleans every room in the entire fucking apartment BESIDES any of said "victims" parts of the house. One time, she got into a fight with Shadowheart and threw all of the dirty laundry she had so carefully put into the laundry room back into her room just all over the fucking place. If shes calm though, the house is normally fairly clean under her and Wyll's watch. It's one of the only things they agree on.

Because every bg3 piece of content I make loops back to bloodweave, I think they would have a little reading time together. Like whenever everybody is settling down for the night and they are up for it, they take this lovely window seat couch/bed thing in Gales room and just take out a good bottle of wine and a book for each of them and just read until late. They originally did this separately, but when the two find themselves both in the living room at 2 in the morning reading, they decide in silent agreement to make it routine. They sometimes read in silence, other times just talking absently about anything. Shadowheart finds out first by coming in to Gales room late one night to return a book he lent to her to find the two both passed out, tucked away in the window, books still in hand before they accidentally passed out. Shadowheart then teases them with photos the morning after.

Karlach and Lae'zel both do these really intense shadowboxing exercises in Karlachs room whenever the two have freetime and enough energy to go through with it. It's a heated bitter rivalry in the eyes of the githyanki, but Karlach just loves a little workout with her friend! Lae'zel does enjoy the workouts, as she doesn't get many options to really let off ALL of her steam, even if she works at a gym as a personal trainer. She is constantly told shes a bit TOO rough with the clients so she has to "tone it down". So it's nice.

Astarion and Shadowheart have girls nights. Like they paint each others nails and watch like twilight together (ironically they get so heated at how wrong they get it. "Just another human writer writing about shit she doesn't get" is used a lot in their rewatches). They also talk about like...their feelings. But it's very sparse and done so by a copious amount of wine (wine with a heavy amount of blood on the side for Astarion). Both of them never got to have moments like this in their childhoods, of just pure calmness and domestic childhood enjoyment, so they make due with what they can.

BY THE HELLS I JUST REALIZED I WROTE THIS MUCH. DAMN OKAY.

[comfortless]

pls sir,,,, more dungeoneer konig and knight gf,,,, pls,,,,

why do you guys like seeing him suffer… part 3 of this guy i suppose! what are the sillies up to now….

dungeoneer! König x fem! reader

content/warnings: injury, violence, does it count as animal death if a gnoll dies i wonder…

She’s not entirely as adept as he is with these things, at least, that’s what he’s believed thus far. How could she be? A woman like her belongs in painted portraits adorning castle walls, not down in the dark with rarely little more than blades and sprays of blood for company.

Despite his assessment, when a particularly nasty gnoll manages to land a deep bite into König’s shoulder, it’s her that saves him. The pain is instant, warm salivating fangs digging past all defenses and pushing straight into muscle. The gnoll even has the audacity to huff out what sounds like a whine of delight when warm blood spurts straight into its maw. Perhaps, had he not been so focused on the lady knight, he wouldn’t have made such an error. Even now, rather than moving to overpower his aggressor, he watches her as she weaves through the debris of the tight corridor, her rapier readied at her side.

He’s fortunate that she reacts immediately, driving the sword so deeply into the beast’s guts that König could almost swear he feels the sharpened tip brush over his own tunic before she presses her boot to the gnoll’s spine and pivots backwards to free her blade, now glistening in crimson. It’s gruesome and foul but the look in her eyes is anything but— only tender.

“Thought he went for your neck…” The concern in her voice rings out clear, her hands trembling when she sheaths the blade and takes his arm into both of her own to lead him out of the decrepit dungeon. There’s nothing here apart from cobwebs and enraged monsters, no signs of a treasure promised. It was foolish of him to even drag her out here and now she’s.. caring for him. Oddly enough, this is the first time in a long stretch he’s had any woman willingly do just that without pity or disdain.

He tries to protest; the wound isn’t that bad, just a few punctures where fangs met flesh. Still, she props him against a sturdy oak, straddles his lap as she takes a dagger to begin tearing away his clothes.

“You don’t need to…” He trails off when she begins to clean the wounds, a little hiss of breath from the sudden sting of some pungent alcohol she’s produced from her bag, a sigh of relief when she smears the balm and wraps the wound tightly with a length of silk.

She’s not as indifferent to him as she pretends to be. Not at all.

More often than not his longing stares are met with a curious glance from her, maybe a soft huff of breath when she turns to look away. After his injury, König finds she’s quite affectionate too. She forces him down to kneel in shallow water while she meticulously cleans him, fusses over the wound as though it were her own, telling him he should not move too much lest he irritates it and draws out other beasts with the scent of his blood. She even gives him an almost imperceptible kiss on the cheek once she’s finished.

Come nightfall, she’s migrated from her bed to his own. There are no inns this far out, only rolling fields and forests. They’re camped out in the open, a horrid idea in the event of bandits, but she insists on watching over him through the night— if anyone comes, they’ll be struck down by this cocky, vigilant lady. He doesn’t doubt her ability anymore.

Their torches have long since burned out, and seeing as she won’t allow him to do so much as brush his hair from his face, stoking a fire seems out of the question. The glow of the moon provides enough visibility for her to see he isn’t clammy and feverish from infection, and that’s satisfying enough for her.

When dawn rises, a soft yellow glow dimmed by pillowy white clouds, König finds her not awake, but curled against his side, still wearing that heavy armor. Though there’s still a dull ache in his shoulder, one that screams he’ll be reprimanded if caught, he diligently works at the straps and buckles to free it from all but her chest before she stirs. When those eyes stare up at him, his heart flutters in a way he’s not so sure it ever had before. There’s always a tingle during an invigorating battle or the wave of excitement that washes over him when he takes his first step to descend into a dark crypt.

This is different.

He finds that it’s not just a blistering lust he feels for her anymore, but an unwavering sense of belonging at her side.

“… told you not to move,” she grumbles, batting his hands away as they rest over the straps along her shoulders. He could never fully place why she looks so different without heavy steel securing her, like a drab cocoon cracking open to reveal an achingly beautiful butterfly. “You should still be sleeping.”

“Ja, but you looked uncomfortable.”

“I’m not even supposed to be asleep.” Follows it up with a laugh that breezes like the most gentle song to his ears.

When they begin to gather their things to move on to the next destination, a small village near the coast, he realizes just what this bizarre feeling is. It’s love, or at least the closest to it that he still believes in.

“Is it against your code to marry?,” he asks, nonchalant as their next journey begins.

She’s busying herself looking over the map, her fingertips ghosting over the weathered parchment ad if the carve a path. The question doesn’t register for a moment, but when it does, her brow raises slightly in confusion.

“You know that I’m not a knight, König.”

“You are to me.”

She pauses for a moment, nearly dropping the map as her steps come to a sudden halt. She rolls the parchment back up, glancing away from him then.

“Then no, I suppose it’s not.”

[littlemourningstarr]

Feed the Beast

Sekh finally gets that drink Rugan promised him- with a far more enjoyable outcome than he initially expected.

Kinktober 2024, Day 23: "Creampie"

Read below or on AO3!

Pairing: Astarion x Transmasc tav

Part of the Eternally Yours series!

Tags: Transmasc tav, jealousy, cunnilingus, vaginal sex, creampie, voyeurism, kinktober, kinktober 2024

Sekh knotted his hair back as he headed down the stairs of the Elfsong. The tavern was beginning to bustle, the light of the day fading, most of the patrons willing to utterly ignore the threat of the Absolute that was being openly thrown about in the streets.

If there was one thing Sekh had learned in all his years, from any city- albeit all of them smaller than Baldur’s Gate- was that when night hit, it didn’t matter if the world was ending, so long as there was a strong drink and the prospect of promising company to be had.

He side stepped Lakrissa with a grin as she delivered drinks, her tail flicking at him playfully. He could see Karlach and Wyll, across the tavern, already with drinks in hand. Considering there was no one in their room above when he’d left, he presumed that everyone had already dispersed for a bit of reprieve.

Even if they were trying to fight the gods and avoid turning into mind flayers, they deserved to have a little fun, after all.

Sekh made his way to the bar, was content to wait as Alan dealt with an already overly drunk patron, before he heard someone exclaim, “Well, by Sune’s grace.” The drow glanced over his shoulder, just in time to see a human man shouldering through the crowd, smiling at him. He looked familiar…

The Zhentarim. The color of his armor gave him away.

“Rugan,” he offered, plucking the name from memories that felt like they occurred lifetimes ago. The man grinned at him, this ruggish charm to his face, pleasant lines along his mouth and eyes.

“The fact that you remembered is another blessing.” He leaned up against the bar, dark eyes taking Sekh in in the same way he had, back in the cave mouth after the gnolls, and within the Zhentarim hideout. “I do believe I owe you a long awaited drink.”

At that moment Alan was finally free of the drunken patron, and was more than happy to take Rugan’s order. Sekh didn’t have time to say anything else before the man was holding two glasses and gesturing towards a little table, set slightly away from the chaos. Sekh followed, glancing about the tavern again, caught Karlach’s eye as the tiefling quirked an inquisitive brow.

Sekh shook his head, chasing away whatever sordid little thoughts she was having. He wanted to shout to her about Astarion, but he knew the vampire had slipped away to find himself a meal. Sekh just hoped he would be back soon. Everything still felt fresh, with Cazador newly dead, and a part of him wanted to hover over Astarion like a protective shroud.

He fought that part down, because Astarion needed to know that Sekh trusted him, to make his own decisions, to take care of himself. And he did, he just-

He worried.

He heard a buzzing chuckle in his head, realized Syl was laughing at him and his tumultuous thoughts. He would have told her off, had he not reached the table already. Instead he ignored her, settling down as Rugan offered him the glass.

“Hope you’re a whiskey man,” he offered, and Sekh had to smile.

“My tolerance is shit,” he admitted, lifting the glass, “but shockingly, whiskey treats me better than wine.” Rugan lifted his glass, tipping it towards Sekh.

“I think we should drink to you,” he offered, and before Sekh could protest was tossing back a solid mouthful of the whiskey. Sekh took a solid sip himself, the burn down his throat rather grounding. His mother had always liked whiskey- he had memories of her out drinking his father while attempting to play Sava on many nights. It had always been a fun sight, until they chased him off to bed for a bit of privacy. “Glad to see you here in one piece, Sekh’met.”

Sekh flashed a smile. “Glad to be in one piece. I take it you didn’t have anymore gnoll trouble?”

Rugan chuckled, a shockingly warm sound. “Gods no, thankfully. I’ve seen enough of those flea-ridden beasts to last a lifetime.”

Sekh raised his glass to that. “Agreed.” He took another drink, the burn less intense now, filling his belly with warmth. There was maybe half a mouthful left in his glass, and he tossed it back with ease, noticed Rugan just watching him as he set the glass down. It was the same look he’d had back at the Zhentarim hideout, still. Interest. Of the most definitely carnal kind.

And Sekh was flattered, and maybe once upon a time, if he’d blown into a city and Rugan had looked at him like that, he would have taken him to bed. But now, with his heart so wrapped up in Astarion, his blood singing for the vampire even when he was gone-

And the tangle of thorns that Rolan had now added, to his heart and soul, the tiefling’s kisses still a fresh memory…

“I know that look,” Sekh said, “and I’m flattered, but I’m going to break your heart now, instead of in ten minutes when you ask me to bed.”

Rugan’s brows arched, eyes a little wide- and then he laughed, shaking his head. Laughed at himself, Sekh was sure. “I’m that obvious?”

“You were that obvious when we first met.”

Rugan glanced at his cup, before he tipped his head back, finishing his own whiskey as well. “Shame, I’ve never been with a drow, and you’re…” he shrugged a shoulder.

“Alluring? Heart stopping?” Sekh filled in, grinning like mad. There was a flitting pull, in his mind- Syl getting endless bemusement from this little chat. She did so love when Sekh got cocky.

Rugan snorted, shaking his head. Before he could say anything else, Sekh felt a set of cool fingers tracing up his shoulder, and then Astarion was leaning in, eyes hyper focused on Rugan. “Who is your company, pet?”

Rugan jumped a bit, as if Astarion had simply appeared out of nowhere. “Impressively quiet,” he mused, his eyes locked on the hold Astarion had on Sekh’s shoulder- recognition dawning in his eyes. Sekh would have offered a sheepish smile- but his head was beginning to hurt, with Syl’s presence whipping about, eagerly waiting to see if Astarion would get territorial- she did love a little bloodshed.

And now his tadpole, squirming, as it did every so often. He schooled his face to avoid grimacing, and reached up, covered Astarion’s hand with his own.

“Astarion, you remember Rugan.” He added, softer, “The Zhentarim.”

Astarion continued to stare, his face a cool mask. When he didn’t speak, Rugan did. “With the way you move like a ghost- do you want a job?”

Astarion laughed then- a single, sharp sound. “You couldn’t afford me.”

Rugan was smiling despite it. “The Zhentarim can afford anything. But, I can take your rejection.” The words were spoken to Astarion, even as Rugan looked at Sekh. He stood up then, grabbing his glass. “I think I need another drink. Keep yourself in one piece, Sekh.” He gave them a nod before he slipped away, into the tavern, back towards Alan and the bar.

Sekh glanced up at Astarion, but before he could say more the vampire was hauling him up from his seat, a hand grasping his forearm and all but pulling him through the crowd. Sekh followed quickly, as he was led up the stairs, Astarion all but throwing open the door to their shared sleeping quarters-

And then Sekh, being slammed back against it, so hard his shoulders dug into the wood. Astarion pinned his one arm up over his head, studying him with those red eyes, so alert, a bit of color to his cheeks from having freshly fed. His hold was firm, but not painful. Had a single thing he’d done caused Sekh discomfort, the drow would have spoken up.

“He wanted you.” Astarion said the statement without flourish.

“Yes, he did.” The vampire moved closer, effectively boxing Sekh back against the door. “And I didn’t want him. Do you trust me when I say that?”

Astarion nodded. His eyes weren’t burning with anger or fear, but swarming with this primal, feral need. It left Sekh feeling warm in his belly- and it had nothing to do with the whiskey he’d had.

“And yet, you pulled me up here and have me cornered like I’m prey.” Sekh rolled his hips with the last word, watched Astarion’s eyelids flutter.

“Seeing someone look at you like that.” The vampire leaned in, nosed at Sekh’s jaw, so he could breathe in his pulse. “It makes me feel like a beast.” He squeezed Sekh’s arm, and the drow’s other hand found Astarion’s waist, grasping onto his shirt.

“And what does that beast want?” Sekh whispered. He felt Astarion’s mouth, press to his pulse, tongue flick against his skin, taking a taste. “Does it want to be comforted?” Because if Astarion needed Sekh to hold him and whisper how much he adored him, he would. He understood jealousy- especially when things were still new. When Astarion had only just bared his heart to him.

Astarion shook his head, pressing tighter to Sekh, so he could rut against him. “It wants to devour.”

“Then feast.”

Astarion lifted him then, hoisted him up with a strength that seemed unrestrained suddenly, fueled by a belly full of blood and Cazador’s broken chains. Sekh didn’t argue or fight being tossed over Astarion’s shoulder, the vampire cupping his ass with one hand as the other grasped his thighs, carrying him quickly across the room to their bed. Sekh’s only thought was that he was glad they had the room to themselves- and he hoped everyone would keep themselves busy, for a bit.

Astarion tossed him onto the bed, climbing up over him and ravishing his mouth. The kiss was all teeth and Astarion’s searching tongue, pushing into Sekh’s mouth, tasting of blood still. Sekh growled over it, hands moving for Astarion’s shirt, nearly ripping at the fabric as he tried to shove it up his torso. Astarion had slipped a hand between them, managed to get Sekh’s pants open enough that he could slide right in, hand getting into his underwear and fingers sliding along his lips.

Sekh arched, the single touch sending a tremble through his thighs. Astarion tutted, before he whispered, “Wet, are we?” His fingers pushed past Sekh’s lips, sliding with a slick ease to his entrance and teasing. “What was it? Him?”

Sekh lifted his head, answered with a kiss, pinching Astarion’s lower lip between his teeth. The vampire groaned, a finger slipping into Sekh, as the drow whispered, “you.” 

Astarion pulled his hand from Sekh’s pants, growled out something about needing him naked- honestly, the words were lost on Sekh. He felt blinded by Astarion’s contagious need, was more than happy to rip at clothing and squirm about the bed with him until they were both gloriously naked.

The moment Sekh’s back was flat against the bed again, Astarion was shoving his thighs open, staring down at his cunt with starved eyes. His nails bit into Sekh’s skin as he settled on his belly, wasted no time dragging his tongue up along his slit, gathering all Sekh’s desire on his tongue and swallowing with a smile. Sekh spread his legs wider, swore his hips were going to crack with the effort, as Astarion’s tongue pushed directly to his clit, circling it slowly, as if Sekh needed to be teased.

The drow bucked, and in response Astarion closed his mouth over the heavy bud, suckled at it. Sekh whined, tipped his head back, breathed Astarion’s name-

And felt a warmth, inside his skull. Fuck, Syl was still pulling at their connection, breathing in his pleasure as if it were her own. “Fuck, Astarion- wait.”

The vampire lifted his head, pupils blown from savoring Sekh, staring up at him. “What’s wrong?”

“Syl is still… she can-”

Astarion huffed. “Let your little patron watch, my sweet. Let the world watch for all I care.”

And then he lowered his mouth back to Sekh’s cunt, and any protest Sekh had died with the next flick of his tongue. If Astarion didn’t care, he sure as the nine hells didn’t. He rolled his hips up, meeting his lover’s mouth, as Astarion focused that devilish tongue on his clit, flicking it now, over and over again, quickly, so quickly it was driving Sekh’s belly to waves-

Gods he was close.

He reached down, sank his fingers into Astarion’s curls. “Slower,” he managed, and his vampire listened, slowing the movements of his tongue, lingering along the most sensitive spots that he had learned. Sekh groaned, tightened his hold on Astarion’s hair, pulled him closer, felt a heat enveloping him, rising up in his veins. He ground into his lover’s mouth, held Astarion so close he wasn’t even sure how the man managed to move his tongue-

And found his bliss. He came with a grin and Astarion’s name on his lips, could feel the shadows on his face wisping about, extending down his neck, his shoulder, as if he was using his patron’s shadows. His vampling continued those perfect movements of his tongue, until the wave had crested, subsided-

And then he was pushing up onto his knees, grasping Sekh by the hips and studying him, as he left his cock rub against his flushed cunt. “I think she liked that,” Astarion teased, noting the way Sekh’s shadows were moving.

Sekh didn’t bother responding- Astarion was right, after all- and simply let his hips cant, encouraging Astarion to rub his cock against him. “You’re not done with me,” Sekh teased, and Astarion’s only response was to push himself into him in a single, smooth thrust, until he was fully sheathed in Sekh’s body.

Sekh gasped, the sound ending in a guttural growl, as Astarion fucked into him with a pace that was relentless. The vampire was baring his teeth, those glorious fangs, a line of sweat making its way down his throat, eyes wild and rabid. He looked as if he wanted to possess Sekh, starting inside his bones and seeping out until he had every inch of him.

Sekh tried to push back, meeting Astarion’s rhythm. The vampire dropped down over him, caught himself with one hand pressed firmly to the bed, the other grasping Sekh’s chin, forcing his drow to hold his stare.

“You.” He thrust deeper, made Sekh see sparks, in the corners of his vision. “Are.” He gripped harder, nails poking little indents into Sekh’s dark skin. “Mine.”

The kiss he gave Sekh stole his very soul. Sekh reached for him, held on, let Astarion relentlessly take his pleasure from him, wanted nothing more than the be the one to give it to him. When Astarion pulled back, he pushed himself back up to his knees- panting now, cheeks flushed as if he was alive.

Sekh knew the little signs that his lover was close- the subtle grit to his teeth, the darting movements of his eyes. He rolled his hips harder to meet each movement, determined to bring Astarion off- and could only sigh in bliss when he felt Astarion’s first spurt of cum, inside him.

Instead of burrowing deep into Sekh’s body, as he normally would, Astarion pulled almost out as he moaned, reaching down to stroke his shaft with just his head buried in Sekh’s body. Sekh whimpered, could feel his lover’s orgasm more like this.

Astarion pulled out while he was still panting, and Sekh could feel his cum, sliding along his hole, coating him. Astarion smirked, all fang, staring down at his drow’s messy cunt. “What a pretty little mess,” he nearly cooed, taking his fingers and swiping them through his cum. Sekh shivered, the nerves of his cunt still so alive- and then gave a sharp cry, as Astarion pushed those fingers into his body, began fucking his cum back into him. “We’re not done, darling,” he breathed, watching Sekh squirm. “I’m going to make sure that every inch of you smells of me. By the time we’re done, no one will mistake you for being anything other than mine.”

Sekh arched, let his eyes fall shut- couldn’t find a reason or the desire to argue. If anything, he wanted everyone to look at him and know Astarion was there, in his very blood.

He wanted everyone to look at Astarion and know Sekh was there, deep inside his marrow, as well.

[chaoticbardlady99]

What about an astarion fic with a masc reader? I rarely see them, and I need it! He has me on my knees, honestly.

 One of Your Girls (Astarion x M! Reader) MDNI 18+

Title inspired by the song “One of Your Girls” by Troye Sivan

CW: Smut, fluff, dom! Reader, sub! Astarion, mentions of sexual trauma (really really wanna emphasis that I didn’t quite know what masc meant when I first began writing)

Author Note- I wasn’t able to find a video with Astarion’s proposition that wasn’t translated from Greek so I had to try to recreate the scene from memory (I don’t need my boyfriend asking to read my smut- he wants to, I’m not fond of the idea, ya know how it is). 

I have also noticed that there is not a lot of Masculine Reader x Astarion fics. I want to reiterate that I am a woman, so if you are a male and you read this fic, please let me know what you like about the content and maybe give me pointers on male behavior if you feel I’m off  (please remember to be kind, I just want to learn, not be crucified). 

    

Astarion stands at the entrance of his tent- impatiently tapping his foot against the ground as some pink-hair tiefling attempts to flirt with him. His instincts say stop being distracted. Focus on the very obviously interested woman in front of him, but he just can’t. 

  He had spent the last two weeks since he had met you trying to get you into his bed. However, he had never met someone more dense in his life. 

  He flirts with you constantly, he sees the blush color on your cheeks when he does. He sees how you try not to sneak glances at him when he decides to join you at the river to clean off. He sees your interest in him when you talk, in the way your eyes shine when he makes you laugh.

 While Astarion was almost certain that everyone in camp adored you and practically drooled everytime you walked by- he had really felt like he had secured his spot in your bed. Secured your protection.  

 Yet here he is- drinking shitty wine, being talked at by some girl, and watching you talk to everyone else, but him.

  He sneaks glances at you while pretending to be interested in whatever the woman is saying. He takes in all the details of your face- a soft smile pulls on his lip as he watches you erupt in laughter. The tiefling talking to him huffs and says something to him. She must have wisened up eventually because he suddenly doesn’t hear her incessant chattering in his ears.

  You wander around camp- all 6’2 and 230 lbs of you. Your body is chorded with strong muscles and littered in scars- the majority hidden away by your clothing. 

 You unceremoniously stomp around camp, talking and laughing with your other companions. You catch him staring and flash him one of your brilliant smiles. He watches as you take three massive gulps from your wine glass.

 For a Barbarian, you are quite charming in your own oblivious way. You are funny, brave, and morally gray. Your general disposition is magnetic- you could (and did) convince a Gnoll to eat itself. You are impulsive and quick to jump into battle which infuriates Astarion, but you always stand right next to his side- making sure that no harm will come to him. Sometimes, to your own detriment! How have you not asked to get into his bed!?

  You turn to who you are talking to, say something,  and begin walking towards Astarion. Astarion envies the way you walk- head held high, confident, but with a genuine smile on your face. You aren’t confident in a narcissistic, pompous way. You are confident in a humble way. You don’t let your ego lead your life. People like you and want to fight for you. He could never be anywhere close to the man you are, but that is why he needs you. You can convince the others to protect him when the time comes.

  You stop in front of him. He pours more wine in your glass as you hold it out to him. You take a sip and he watches as you look at him. He sees the confidence you have waiver slightly. 

   Strange.

 You step closer to him and take his hand in yours, running your thumb over his knuckles. Astarion exhales sharply and you go to jerk your hand back, an apology on your lips when Astarion grabs your hand. While the act of intimacy had surprised him, it certainly wasn’t uninvited. He would never admit it, but your touch lights him on fire in a way he has never experienced before. You look at your intertwined hands and blush. Astarion fights back a satisfied grin.

  So maybe I’m not wrong, maybe you are interested.

 Astarion smirks at you as he watches the pleased blush spread across your cheeks.

 “Sooooooo,” you say with a slight slur, “are you enjoying yourself tonight?”

   Astarion scowls and rolls his eyes, “you know I never pictured myself as a hero. Never thought I’d be the one they toast for saving so many lives and now that I’m here,” he pauses to take a drink, his tongue sticking out in disgust, “I hate it. This is awful.  I would have liked more for my troubles than a pat on the head and vinegar for wine.”

  It’s your turn to roll your eyes and a throaty chuckle comes out of your mouth. 

 “Well at least it’s a celebration,” you sigh, “I am grateful to have something to celebrate for- even though the wine is truly terrible.”

 “I was just hoping to be more…. Entertained.”

“True, the goblin’s probably would have thrown a much more wild party,” you quip.

 “Well, we could create our own entertainment…” Astarion says while watching your reaction.

  You stare at him quizzically, “Like play a game?”

   Astarion had to fight the urge to scream at the top of his lungs.

 Astarion pulls together his composure for a smile before he says, “No darling, I mean sex.”

 You stare at him wide eyed and Astarion is wondering if he read the situation wrong. Then you move forward, sliding your hand up his jaw, into his hair, gently pulling it. Astarion gasps as you press your mouth against his, your tongue gliding across his bottom lip before you pull it in with your teeth. You pull back, your grip on his hair loosening and you look into his eyes with a confident smirk.

  You put your mouth against his ear and whisper, “like that?”

 Astarion nods- if he needed air, it would have been knocked out of him. Your lips on his were electrifying. 

 “Let’s find each other when everyone goes to sleep,” he says while looking up at you with hooded eyes.

 Your grin gets even wider, “Gods, I thought you’d never ask.”

_________________________________________________________________________

   Astarion feels you lift him up and wrap him around your hips- his back colliding with the tree. Your lips are on his hungrily, needy, but with restraint as he feels your erection grow. Astarion makes quick work of your shirt and begins to move to the laces of your pants. 

  You palm him through his pants and he gasps against your lips. After your pants are off, you and Astarion work on his. When they are off, he throws them unceremoniously. You smile nervously at him.

 “I’m not very good at the whole, removing clothes thing,” you say with a breathy chuckle as you kiss down his neck, wrapping your hand around his hard cock. 

  Astarion moans and growls, putting his head into the crook of your neck. 

 “I’ve noticed. I’ve only been trying to seduce you for the last two weeks,” he manages to gasp out.

 “Well then,” you say with a lustful grin, “let me reward you for waiting so patiently.” 

    You set him down on his back and begin to kiss along his neck and down his body. One of your fingers glides into him and he stifles a moan. You put your mouth around the head of his cock as you pump your finger and then add another. Your mouth moves up and down- your rough tongue applying pressure in all the right places. He cums into your mouth while looking at you.

  It feels good, but Astarion is desperately trying not to dissociate. Yes, to an extent this feels significantly different and maybe even makes him feel happy? It just doesn’t erase two hundred years of being degraded and used. 

  He feels your mouth leave his cock and your fingers aren’t inside him anymore.  You don’t go to kiss him. He looks at you with confusion. You stare back in concern.

 “Astarion,” you start, “ if you aren’t into this… we don’t ne-”

 Astarion panics and grips your hair, pulling you towards him before crashing his lips against yours. You pull away to ask him again, but he beats you to it. He will not lose his protection- his only hope of freedom.

 “Of course I want this, “ he hisses against your lips, puncturing your lower lips with his fangs, “I just need you inside me already, darling.” 

  You still look unconvinced when he wraps his hand around your cock, stroking it. Your gasp sounds like music to his ears- the concern in your eyes fades and becomes replaced with lust. You kiss him hard on the mouth before you flip him on his stomach. Astarion gets up on all fours.

  Saved it. 

 You pump yourself- using the precum as lubricant. Astarion feels you press into his entrance slowly before slipping inside of him. He moans as he hears you release a quiet hiss.

  “Hells, “ you moan, tangling his hair in your fingers as you slowly rock your hips, “you feel so fucking good. Are you going to be good for me?”

  When he nods, you pull out and slam into him. Astarion cries out in pleasure as you hit that perfect spot inside of him.

 “I said, “ you growl, “are you going to be good for me?”

    “Yes,” he chokes out, tears pricking his eyes as you fill him up. You feel absolutely perfect inside of him.

 That was all you needed before you began to pound in and out of him- your hand snaking around his waist, jerking him off as you praise him for being so good for you. 

 Astarion is a moaning, screaming mess around and underneath you. He has never had anyone pay so much attention to his pleasure and as his second orgasm of the night rips through him, he feels you reach your release inside him. You collapse on top of him, using your arms to prop yourself up as you kiss his shoulders and his neck before rolling over, pulling him close to you. 

 ____________________________________________________________________________

   He feels you begin to relax into sleep with your arms around him. 

 “Will you stay?”

  He hears you say quietly- the confidence in your voice not there. He turns around in your arms and looks at your hopeful, nervous face. He smiles, the look on your face snapping him out of the trance he was in. Astarion nods and presses a chaste kiss on your mouth before turning around again.

  Once Astarion is sure you have fallen asleep, he fights back the urge to cry. He knows it’s different- being with you felt like nothing he has ever experienced before, but he still couldn’t shake the tainted feeling in his chest as you held him close. Not because he doesn’t want to stay here in your arms, but because the reminder that all he was created for was sex; suddenly became too heavy of a burden to bear.

[c-rowlesdraws]

today a friend I haven’t seen in a while asked to see some commissions I’d done recently and gang, it was almost all gnolls in there. Just wall-to-wall hyenas. Hyenas by the bushel. I can’t believe all this started almost exactly a year ago when I did a couple little drawings of a character I never thought I’d revisit, of a dnd race I’d only just read about. Now the outline/WIP script of Sweet Pea and Nettle’s story is a google doc long enough to need a table of contents for navigation (and hopefully finish-able in its final comic form someday), and I’ve got several more of her kinspeople lined up in my commission queue. I still don’t quite know how I got here! But I’m having a lot of fun and clearly, the only thing to do about it… is draw more hyenas. ✨🎨

[ottertooferswriting]

BG3 Fic Teaser AstarionxHalsinxTav: Stay at Camp

Blood was a scent that Halsin was familiar with on an intimate level. More recently that of goblin, druid, tiefling and gnoll. His senses lately were all but flooded with the acrid, metallic tang. He couldn’t seem to escape it. Random memories from his time in the wretched cave prison he had been kept in still came roaring back from time to time; whenever the particular combination of rot, filth and drying pools of red so dark it nearly became black hit his nose. 

In the week that he had spent trailing after the camp of the unturned, unable to fully join their circle but still welcomed to spend his time amongst them the scent had been fleeting. But still present. Each time those who had been selected for their skills needed for that day came back bloodied from their exploits he could tell how badly each had been wounded. 

The lingering copper and sulfur and magic from whatever or whomever they had slain was not terribly pleasant, but everyone bathed in a timely manner the moment they could. It faded quickly enough to a muted, background hum. On all but one. 

Pale of skin and pale of hair, lovely in form and face and sharp of tongue. The elf always smelled of blood. He couldn’t seem to shake the scent any more than Halsin could. But the way it clung to his scent like an old lover or perhaps an old enemy; engrained so deeply it likely would never leave was uncommon. Unusual even amongst those who claimed killing as their profession. 

If he didn’t know better, knew the limitations of a particular brand of monster who had very similar traits to the quick witted and contrary companion Tav kept, Halsin would have been inclined to think him a vampire. But the small details such as walking about in broad daylight and lack of aversion to running water amongst other things dissuaded such lines of thought. And yet. The scent of blood remained. Fleeting glimpses of what might have been fangs taunted Halsin’s vision. 

---

BG3 Has Consumed my literal Soul. I love these characters an absolutely normal amount. First post to tumblr in many a year, looking forward to getting back into the swing of things. I do writing commissions both spicy and sfw for a variety of fandoms, willing to do OC's x Canon's ect.

Info post for commissions live now and pinned.

TBC. Chapters will go up on Patreon first then come to AO3\Tumblr two weeks later on average.

Ch1 is up both here and A03 now word count 6.8k currently.

here is link to full chapter.

[canaidliafail]

Way back to her 2/2

Minthara x f!tav

CW: Possessive & jealous Minthara, adult content and interactions MDI

[Tav was a knight at the Beanre household and caught Minthara’s attention forming an interesting relationship. After the Absolutes abduction she is now trying to find her way back to her]

I’ve had part 2 in my notes for a while and only posted on ao3 so I decided to go ahead and post it here as well

[ part 1 ]

[Who made you like this?

Who encrypted your dark gospel in body language?

Won't you come and dance in the dark with me?

Show me what you are, I am desperate to know]

[1]

“The curse is thick as shit here fuck” You coughed out and rubbed your eyes and wiped the grime and blood off your chin. Cold sweat coated your back and you shivered in discomfort. You barely had enough time to rest after a fight with some Undead guards and now you were in what closely resembled a graveyard. The place reeked of rot and the cursed shadows clogged your lungs

“Fuck me so thats our best bet to Baldurs gate? Better find those wretched goblins then. Moonrise towers, is it?”

Astarion whined. You nodded and unfolded the map that minthara gave you “Correct. Now right down this road there should be our scouts waiting for us…” You trailed on and started walking while squinting through the darkness. The rest followed you in silence. Gale however, the gentleman that he was tried to check on Lae’zel every so often to make sure she was holding up alright after the grand failure that her Creche was. You tried to chime in and fell back to match her pace

“If you ever need to speak about it”

“Trust me, You will know when Im ready” she hissed and you smiled. Not at her despair but of how familiar this tone was to you. You squeezed her arm and moved on. In the distance you noticed the dim lights of torches trembling through the clouds of darkness

You spotted goblins messing with a gnoll tossing it into the abyss beyond. It chases after it and once it fell out of sight you only heard its yelps of pain

“You the true soul that Minthara told us about?” they asked. You scoffed.

they really aren’t bright if they are asking every stranger in need such an open and convenient question

“I am”

You were firm and the spider lyre was already in your hands waiting for tunes to be plucked. The sleazy bastard tried to get in your favors and practically salivated when he asked you to put in a good word for him to Lord Ketheric thorm. You were vaguely familiar with this specific character, well no, personality type if you will. While you never directly spoke to them you saw them approach Minthara at the manor and you despised them all the same. Blessed was the day that she prohibited you from talking to anyone with kindness or talking to them at all. It came out of nowhere but you were grateful nonetheless.

The road was as eventful as one would expect in such areas and your guide was nothing but a terribly unfortunate victim of the Absolute that you most likely would have to rip apart in the later days to come. In these lands you didn’t think the towers would be elegant or polished since the place fell short from such luxuries. Despite it all it was well kept and standing and the guards didn’t question you urging you in

“He is waiting for you inside true souls”

The place was bustling with goblins guards and drunken bards all yapping and talking their shit. It was horrendous.

“I’ve never felt more unsafe in a place before”

you confessed. You’ve seen battles and you countered 87 assassination attempts 79 of which were courtesy of the ever so lovely Minthara and her training and it didn’t compare to this place.

“Agreed. Sooner we get done ,the better. What…are we supposed to be looking for exactly?”

“Guess we'll know once we find it. Can’t slip out of this meeting though”

Shadowheart was silent for a bit and then resumed her questioning “What about Minthara? Will you talk to her?”

she asked as the gates of the main hall were pushed open to reveal the woman in question

“No way around it” she replied to herself and you all fell silent to the sight before you

“IF I had Drow warriors instead of Goblin trash then I wouldn’t have failed as I did!” she bit back and you felt something blossom in your chest again. This was her.This was who you knew

“Are you suggesting it was his fault?”

“yes, No! I would never”

and there it is again. That paralyzing fear

This wasn’t her just yet but something peculiar was unfolding. The energy shifted and a headache came crashing in your skull. You felt the tadpole squirm and you tried not to panic. You looked behind you and your companions seemed as distraught as you by the sheer force and control the absolute had in these halls.

[2]

“Z’rell wants to see you. Enjoy your dinner” A human bard said and tossed a basket with bread on your table near your plates. You couldn’t eat. You were not hungry. You may have shifted her attention and Minthara wasn’t sentenced with the death penalty but who knew what they were doing to her down there.

“It’s alright blossom you tried” Astarian said with a smirk and lack of compassion and turned to the others

“Now what do you think Z’rell will want with us?”

“Either congratulate us for the massacre of those goblins back in the main hall or give us some new errand to run around. Still feeling a little lost with what our next move should be” she confessed and Gale agreed

“We know what our final one is. Question is how do we get there. As we saw the General…” he said in a hushed tone and leaned in “He is near immortal. The axe went halfway through his neck!” he hissed and straightened his fingers mimicking the movement of the axe on his neck with his hand. You picked on a potato and out of curiosity looked up to see their heads turned your way waiting for your input. You simply didn’t care though. Not when you felt like there was more that you could do for her. One last thing perhaps?

“I’ll take a walk. I'm getting nauseous….” you pushed yourself off the table and left everyone behind. Your goal was to reach the balcony. But once you went past the first wooden door you were met with a small hallway. A set of stairs heading far down beneath the building and a door to your right with a soft breeze coming through. You clenched your fist and walked downstairs. To your relief, it really was the prison which was an odd thing to consider. You strolled around and you were met with a piercing screech from the room to your left. Your hair raised at the gruesome sound and your pulse quickened, immediately recognising the voice. You walked through the shabby wooden door and saw two clerics and minthara. the air was thick in the small room and she was ready to fall on her knees

“Not only did you fail to follow orders, the most damning thing of all was your need of approval and affection from a mortal no less”

“You have no right-Ach!” her knees gave and she fell on the ground, her fingers digging into her skull. You stepped forward

“Let me handle this” the clerics stepped backwards happy to oblige before a true soul and you shut them out peering into her mind. Amidst the purple haze you saw her and she saw you. Truly this time

“you…came? I…Prayed that you would but there are no Gods left for me…” she whispered and you stepped closer to her “I would always come for you, I never stopped”

“I know. I remember but…Fuck” her head dropped and her voice broke. Your heart was shaken as you realized that she was fighting back tears. She whimpered and it took everything within you not to throw your arms around her “You are safe now but first, let’s kill these bastards for what they’ve done to you” you urged and she looked up hopeful and ready.

It took one, two, three swift swings of her maces and your sword for their limbs to gracelessly roll on the floor. You Turned around covered in blood and before you could say anything more she walked up to you and hugged you, reaching around your neck and pulling you towards her. Your arms snaked around her waist and then you fell on your knees holding her around her thighs, your cheek pressed against her leg.

“I can’t believe this, you came and I…I didn’t recognise you before…” she trailed on and began to stroke your hair

“What have they done to you-“ you said and tried to keep your voice steady

“They were..erasing me completely. They tried to wipe my mind and even someone like me wouldn’t have held much longer” she confessed, shaken. She was scared so you fulfilled your duty as the knight of the Beanre house

“You will tell me everything. For now let’s get out of here”

[3]

Everyone complained and was wary while Minthara curtly patted the ground and tried to figure out how to set her tent. She chose the spot furthest from everyone knowing that she would not be trusted or welcome. You knew of her loyalty to lolth and unfortunately to the absolute so you didn’t doubt it that she would devote it to you all as well after rescuing her. You walked up making an effort to show off your taut arm muscles by rolling up the short sleeves of your top.

“Let me help you miss”

“Still on with that title. You never stopped being a loyal pup” she praised and truthfully if you had a tail it would be wagging furiously. You Immediately got on with helping her set up her tent. Not that she needed any help but she seemed to appreciate the gesture. It took a few hours with you fussing over her beddings and took some furs from your bunk to add to her comfort refusing to let royalty lay on grass. She observed you all the while and sat on the newly carpeted ground offering you a hand to pull you down. You sat across from her and felt a warm tingle run up your spine at the familiarity.

“How have you been ? It’s..It’s been years since I last saw you” she whispered and reached out a hand hesitantly and caressed your cheek. You leaned in to her touch and your brows tilted up in affection and sadness

“I haven’t stopped searching for you, that’s all I’ve been doing ever since you vanished that day…so if anything what I want to know is what happened to you? How did you wind up in all of this?”

she looked down and told you everything. She spoke of Orin and you felt jealous before she reassured you that the only thing between the two was manipulation, false comradery and now hatred. She worshiped her and the Absolute but none of that faith lingered or was ever true in the first place

“She slaughtered my men and made me watch…she put the tadpole in my eye and laughed at my fear…at my pain…” she quietly spoke. You adjusted your position to move closer to her and pulled her in your arms

“If you will have me by your side I will protect you. My path and vow to you still stands Minthara and-“

your voice faltered and she pulled away to look in your eyes waiting for you to finish your sentence

“And…If you would have me as something more than a knight by your side then I would gladly take on that role…as your suitor” you said with uncharacteristic forwardness and formality that you were long past

she chuckled

“Suitor? How interesting. Will you be consulting with my mother for my hand in marriage as well?”

you were quite and you wondered if you should had but she snapped you out of your thoughts

“I jest. But I do appreciate your confession…more than that actually…” She said and once again hesitated. She was still shrouded in darkness and betrayal. As loyal as she was she had consistently been let down by those she trusted. you kissed her and she relaxed in your touch moving closer to climb on your lap with her legs spread on each side of your thighs. You broke the kiss and looked in her eyes fixing a loose strand of hair from her face and tucking it behind her ears

“You don’t have to answer me now. First I promised that we would take our revenge. Then and only then when you feel ready you will answer me” she smiled and rested her forehead on yours

“You always understood me so well, my beloved knight. Very well then”

[4]

In menzoberranzen everything was taken to extremes. “hide and seek, if we are found we are dead”

Minthara filled you in on everything you could have missed since you didn’t grow up in the underdark. Your hometown was a far cry from Baldurs gate luxuries however it certainly wasn’t as vicious as this place was.

Minthara felt the weight of her new mace and swung it once,twice in the air for practice. “The guard you were talking to last night” she started conversing and you lifted your head from your book. You straighten your posture, ungluing your back from the wall

“Meaning Elsa ? She is lovely isn’t she ?” you entertained her not having the slightest clue of where this conversation was going

“Lovely?” she hissed with a curious tone. She dropped the mace on the blacksmiths tabletop with a heavy clank and stalked towards you “Explain” she demanded and you felt your throat dry up “She is a good friend…is there something on your mind minthara?” you watched her cheeks hollow and move as she rolled her tongue inside in concentration on how to phrase things next

“Do you know of the rules of games here, knight?”

“all lead to death no?”

she nodded pleased

“Tell her that she has been invited for a game of hide and seek starting now”

It seemed reckless and thoughtless back then. Now you understood that she meant that if Minthara were to find her next to you again she would have her killed with her own bare hands

She was territorial and possessive like that. It all came back to you when she caught you laughing at a joke Shadowheart made.

“You two..what’s your relationship?” she asked that night while you braided her hair. She was on the ground between your thighs in prayer and caught you off guard

“We…shared some intimate moments”

“so you had sex with her?”

you choked on your spit and turned the other way to cough on your sleeve in shock. You turned back to her and tied the end of her braid

“We..did yes”

“Do you share an emotional bond as well?” she asked and was on her feet now facing you, who was seated on a wooden chair. For once, she was taller than you

“If you are asking if my confession to you was false than I assure you-“

“answer my question”

you clenched your jaw. You had to tread carefully for Minthara had a unique way of defining betrayal. Quite a sensitive one as well.

“No. She knew of the fact that I loved another as did I know that the only devotion she has is for Shar” Minthara squinted and tilted her head crossing her arms over her chest “Is that so? Still I'm unsure of how to feel over the fact that you shared your body, a body that belongs to me, with someone else”

you flinched. She was unreasonable and yet to you she made sense. Years of effort and blood to win her trust could be lost within seconds

“Do you…return my feelings then?” You asked. The wind was cold and the lanterns and firepits provided little warmth and somehow this conversation made the atmosphere feel colder than it was.

Minthara was quiet. She knew you had more to say so she stood patiently

“Minthara I will only have you bare with your walls down or I won’t have you at all” You confessed and she nodded and approached you her fingers light on your cheek

“Do you even know what that entails? Are you actually capable of handling that?”

There was the gentle graze of her blunt nails against your flesh and her eyes pierced into yours waiting to see if you would falter

How could a confession sound like a life threat…

“I lived with you, I waited for you and now despite you being taken away from me I found you. I’m the only one who knows what it entails Minthara” She kept her eyes on you barely blinking.

Her sentence was cut short thanks to the visit of the Harper Jaheira

“Hope I am not interrupting. We still have much to discuss about Ketheric Thorm and how to take him down”

Mintharas posture changed “I may have an insight as to where we can look…”

It was foolish trying to get a confession out of her with how grim the times were now. She barely escaped his claws and you had just went by unscathed trying to protect his daughter Isobel. You had other things to focus on and couldn’t allow any distractions

[5]

Minthara started taunting you during battle. Yes her armor was heavy but her pants were leather and tight and she never missed the chance to show off her hips and walk. She consulted with you with a hand low on your ass and other times she looked more at your lips then your eyes. She once pulled you to the side behind a tree and kissed you with bruising force. She left a few bitemarks high on your neck and wiped her glossy lips from your heavy makeout sesh.

It drove you to the edge of insanity. Two nights later you grabbed her arms and pressed her against that same tree near your bunks, ass facing you while you pressed your crotch against it

“You wanna drive me fucking mad or do you finally want me to fuck you sensesless ”

“Spare me your vulgar speech, No harm in a little after battle fun” she said toying with your string thin patience

you pressed your hips against hers and slid another hand around feeling the gap between her tits from the exposed top that she wore. you ventured lower and cupped her cunt above her pants earning a heavy groan that ringed in your head pleasantly

she spread her legs by instinct and pushed her body against yours in wanting “I need you” she whispered and you nibbled on her lobe and trailed kisses lower to her neck

“You have me…I’m here” you husked and slid your hand beneath her tights pants. With a sharp twitch of your wrist you loosened up the zip to give yourself more space for movement and trace her clothed pussy with your fingers to find her wet and ready to take you. You smiled and she felt it “What did you do without me all those years?” you asked, growing possessive and aroused with the fierceness of the moment. She reached around and dug her fingers in your skull, tugging at your loose hair

“I couldn’t allow myself any distractions, Didn’t care for them until I saw you again” she said in earnest. You let out a sigh and brushed her undergarment aside to trace your fingers between her folds gathering her slick. She moaned rich and low like you remembered and loved and grinded her hips against yours. It was unfortunate that you weren’t strapped right now. You could have doubled her pleasure, alas you make due with what you had.

You synced her movements with yours and started rubbing slow circles on her clit indulging in the gasps and sighs that she couldn’t keep contained. You kissed the nape of her neck and left a constellation of bite marks on her skin.

“I need you inside me” she ordered softly and you complied fast pushing one digit inside with ease and started a slow rhythm picking up the pace when you heard your breathing grow faster and heavier. You let go of her arms to wrap a hand around her holding her closer from her sternum while your fingers thrusted deep in and out of her. You felt her come undone in your arms and spill in your hand.

“Minthara….” You whispered and kissed her temple. She tried to turn around in your grasp and rested her sweat covered back against the tree. You helped her fix herself up and kissed her slowly and gently. she looked at you with doe eyes and you could see your reflection in them.

You had so much to say that it all seemed futile.

So with your heart full yet empty you rested your forehead on her shoulder silently and knew that perhaps you would never be more than what you are now.

[6]

This was hardly time to celebrate but the mood was better at camp than before. One of the big three was gone and you had a strong lead to follow and a seemingly clear path to Baldurs gate. It pained you to know that you couldn’t do much to lift the curse of the shadow lands but you didn’t dwell too much on those feelings.

Shadowheart lifted her cup your way in salute and you returned the gesture. You started approaching her and she smiled “Why hello, Lover~” she joked and you laughed to which she winced with a chuckle of her own “Sorry, Sounded funnier in my head. Hope it didn’t come off as anything else” You shook your head in reassurance and squeezed her arm

“No Its alright. How are you holding up? Everything that happened back at Shars temple must have…”

you trailed on and her eyes got cloudy and distant “I want to avoid thinking of it now. Having everything I stood for get wrecked in seconds… It’s too much”

“I understand but just so you know, I’m still your friend. If you consider me that…”

she smiled and reached out to hug you “Thank you. I'm grateful to have you around” she pulled away and cocked a brow “perhaps it's better that things worked out this way. Having to fight off Minthara would have been a tiring battle” she teased and you chuckled

You felt a caress, someone reaching out to your mind and you turned to look at minthara who abruptly withdrew all together. She looked soft, unlike her usual stern stare she seemed insecure and conflicted. you bid shadowheart a quick goodnight and went to her side

“Sorry, old habits. I just, I had to see for myself some things and..” She searched for something as she peered into your eyes and seemed relieved with whatever she found “You stood by me for so long and you may have been the only one who proved their faith. However your confession, after all these years, these battles and your new endeavors” she quipped jealous and glanced at shadowhearts tent before turning her focus to you

“I had to make sure that you still feel the same for me…so I wanted to ask to look into your mind one last time, May I?”

you nodded and she closed her eyes, reaching into your mind carefully. You completely let down your walls, inviting her in to explore as she wished and there she saw everything. Every detail that you memorized of her and every thought and feeling you experience. A strong possessiveness and a word that overshadowed everything

“mine”

she withdrew and smiled at you with mischief, lust and something new. something soft and affectionate

“I know you’ve had your fun with others but now, you can have me instead” she said and challenged you. You reached out and cupped her cheeks eager and pulled her closer

“Minthara you are all I ever wanted ever since I first saw you”

“You have me now. You held my body before but now I want you to know that I'm giving you more than that. It’s a burden to carry I know-”

“No. To win you trust and earn your love is a gift”

you kissed her deep and slow and she reached around your neck and pulled you closer and tighter pulling away only to catch her breath for a moment before diving back in. You held the back of her head and your other hand rested low on her back going up and down, unable to get enough of the feeling of her body against yours.

you both paused at the same time and she looked at you with her brows tilted and her eyes shining, reflecting the moon like freshly spilled blood.

“I love you, I have for a while. I wasn’t sure I could ever tell you but now, I want you to know. I too, want you to belong only to me” you nodded and kissed her on the forehead

“Im yours Minthara”

[demi-shoggoth]

2023 Reading Log, pt 8

36. Everything You Wanted to Know About Indians but Were Afraid to Ask, Revised and Expanded Edition by Anton Truer. This book is written by an Ojibwe professor (as in, both that he’s Ojibwe and teaches Ojibwe language), and is aimed primarily at a novice, non-Native audience. Truer’s whole career is based on expanding education of Native languages, preserving endangered languages, and revitalizing tribal culture while simultaneously building bridges with mainstream American culture. It does a very good job of summarizing issues about land rights, sovereignty, history and civil rights about Native Americans. It’s written in an engaging style, and is doing good anti-racism work, I think. But it has issues, and the big one is the Culture chapter. The Culture chapter is written basically assuming that all Indian Country (his words) works the way that Ojibwe tribes and their neighbors do, with minor variations. Obviously, this is both an introductory book and one that needs to summarize an immensely diverse group of people, but I think the author does himself no favors by saying things like all Native American religions are monotheistic. So definitely take the cultural material with a grain of salt.

37. Hyena by Mikita Brottman. This book is part of the Animal series by Reaktion Books, little chapbook sized books about the natural and cultural history of some particular animal. This book focuses much more on the cultural than natural history, talking about how hyenas have been reviled by many cultures (including modern pop culture) and consistently confused with each other by early scientists. That bit, about the entangling of different hyenas, is the part that was the most novel and interesting to me, as I quite like the history of science. The book is well illustrated, with a variety of woodcuts and illustrations from vintage European books, as well as artifacts from people who live among hyenas, and photos of hyenas wild, in zoos and tamed by people. I did find it a weird oversight that, in a chapter that includes Magic the Gathering cards of hyenas and hyenas in World of Warcraft, that it didn’t talk about gnolls or anthropomorphic hyenas in fantasy fiction.

38. The Monster Overhaul by Skerples. This book is a monster book for fantasy RPGs, written for a generic OSR style game. It’s different in that it focuses on a relatively small number of monsters for its size, instead doubling down on plot hooks, descriptions and ways to otherwise bring creatures to life at the table. The gimmick? Random tables for everything, even the table of contents. The organization is somewhat intentionally bizarre, but the book is well indexed. It’s also highly readable for a book that is comprised mainly of tables. The Monster Overhaul is thoughtful about its uses for monsters, has clever takes on some D&D staples (like how manticores are all male and are the embodiment of male entitlement and bitterness, or how “brain eaters” are literally addicted to humanoid brains), and is very funny to boot. Highly recommended for anyone interested in fantasy RPGs, regardless of system.

39. Healing with Poisons by Yan Liu. This is an academic text discussing the development of Chinese medicine in the 3rd through 10th centuries. The focus is on du, roughly translated as “potency”, a force ascribed to medicinal ingredients that were generally toxic. The book talks about the philosophy of medicine in medieval China and how that philosophy changed between authors, how the government got more involved in standardizing medical texts, and how regional differences between practices and ingredients influenced that standardization. It also goes into a lot of detail about how various toxic minerals, particularly arsenates and mercury, were used to make “elixirs of life”, and how the fact that these often very clearly killed people was rationalized away for centuries before “internal alchemy” became more popular than “external alchemy”. There’s also a discussion of a royal scandal involving the court during the Sui dynasty being plagued by a cat demon!

40. Geopedia by Marcia Bjornerud. This is the best of the –pedia series I’ve read (sorry, Darren Naish!). It covers bits of geology, with a focus on explaining major earth formations and covering the history of science. As such, there’s a lot that I didn’t know that I learned from this book, especially about some of the also-ran hypotheses that were rejected when plate tectonics was understood to be the driving force behind most earth processes. It’s highly readable and does a very good job of drawing connections between bits of seemingly disparate information to explain how the Earth works. This book is a very good resource for people who know a bit about geology and want to learn more.

[gortashs-skidmark]

𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙂𝙖𝙩𝙚'𝙨 𝙈𝙤𝙪𝙩𝙝 - ρα૨ƭ 4 ♥ BG3 x READER ♥

Let's pray this bitch let's me fucking talk. Meet Joe Gort-o. Slaver McGee.

♥

PART 1, PART 2, PART 3, PART 5

This fic involves previous DND knowledge! Such as Grand Duke Ravenguard, The Outer City, Blacksmithing, The Descent, The Zhentarim, Bane, and Enver Gortash.

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

Gender Neutral, un-descriptive looks, No name, MATURE THEMES CONTENT WARNING: Cussing, unfriendly behavior, meeting canon characters

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ As continued...

“Really?” --------- You knew the posh lower lipped accent.  Your head whipped around in fear. It was Gortash himself, here to make an appearance to the people and probably make a scene with Duke Ravenguard after his scouting.  “Oops” “ ‘oops’? Now, now, don’t go back on your statement. Tell me what about my loyal gestures to the city upset you, citizen” He said as he forcefully turned your body around with his gloved hands. He was surrounded by The Fist, you too, now.  Everyone’s eyes are on you.  “Uh” your voice cracked “Your, your uhm. There’s been an abundance of murders in the City but you’re all bark and no bite about helping the Gate's cases” “Really, am I now? Do you know how many meetings frequent Parliament? Through rain and sleet, through sunshine and mud, Parliament gathers everyday. It’s not mandatory, but it is to me. Now citizens” his body turned to the crowd “I work hard. Harder than everyday to help the Council enact on these problems. I never miss meetings, I say my piece. And my loyalty is to this particular down-trodden district.” His hands rested on his cane and he stood confidently. “Don’t be a fool like this poor folk, they know not what we do, what I do, for this city. There will only be improvements from here!! The Gate will rise to its potential with my leadership!!”

Only a few people cheered. A few scowled at you, and the rest clapped in uncertainty. He must be used to this pathetic display of attention. He didn’t look embarrassed. Any attention is good attention.  “What about the weapons trade increasing among the black market? Is that not concerning?” you were fucking stupid. Big mouthed idiot.  “Any trade is positive trade. The ebb and flow of the particular type of product is not under my control, hells even if I could, it wouldn’t be my business. Leave it to your councils City Officers to fix that one, my dear citizen” He had a chokehold on the Zhentarim. His weapons were infernal and the Zhentarim were not favoring Cyric like they used to, and Gortash was increasingly getting Bane’s favor for this.  “Uh-huh. Okay.” you turned to leave again. This display was embarrassing for you, him, and Ravenguard. Your nose met the cold metal face of a breastplate from a towering Fist remember.  “Goddamn..” you whispered more in awe than hurt. “They’re right, Lord Gortash. You’ve seen no improvement since you danced into the council. All self-style and no loyal alignment. A gnoll is more consistent than you.” His scratchy noble voice finally piped. RAVENGUARD LET ME LEAVE, you only said this internally. More attention on you. Baldur’s Mouth Gazette was gonna blow smoke up your ass for this.  “Do I? Dearest Duke?” His eyes glanced at you and turned to his competitor. “It seems your loyalty sways to others, of a different City, in your displays of bravery. Baldur’s Gate needs an active leader, focusing on their- our problems. Not an ill-omened, erewhile Elturel. They chose their leader, they had their ill-lead soldiers. It is time The Gate got some succor, don’t you Grand Duke?” “They did not know their leader was ill-intended. Sometimes I think The Gate is the same, Lord Gortash. I fell into their trap but if it weren’t for my loyalty to this city, to keep trades and mend our alliance with them for the good of folks, I would be ill-willed and a traitor to the Lords’ Alliance and The Fist. Every move I make is for The Gate.” The Duke replied. This was a bit unusual, usually he misjudges characters based on their faux-loyalty. At least you read about. Although Gortash just looks like a slime-bag.  “A hearty choice of words” this was your chance to leave. Their attention had left you. Gortash was your boastful out “Our dear citizen, Ravenguard will help fiendish blood, but not his own fiendish blood, did you not say?” right as you were about to make a grandeur escape.

To Be Continuuueeedd....

[warsofasoiaf]

I know you're a big Baldur's Gate fan. Did you play Baldur's Gate 3?

I did, yes.

For a long time, I didn't want to play Baldur's Gate 3. For me, Baldur's Gate was the tale of Gorion's Ward, the Bhaalspawn, and it was decisively concluded in Throne of Bhaal. You either ascended to the Throne of Bhaal as a god, or forsook the power, and that's it - the story was over. Initially, hearing about a Baldur's Gate 3 felt like desperation: we don't have a good enough idea to stand on its own so we're going to cleave back to the old success story's brand and hope that you buy it. I also don't go for Early Access games as a general rule even among highly-regarded publishers like Larian. They're janky. But I finished it up, and I can tell you what I think. Spoilers below the cut.

For the most part, I enjoyed myself in Baldur's Gate 3. I found it a great way to introduce people to 5e D&D and found the amount of content and rewards for creativity to be quite gratifying. You were genuinely rewarded for thinking outside the box, exploring the map, and using untraditional uses of spells. Protecting characters in fights so they could provide bonuses or become party members was likewise gratifying, it added a risk/reward ratio that made it *harder* to play a hero. That's rewarding in video games because the game is tying the psychological thrill of beating an encounter to a material reward over and above continued play. Sometimes that could be aggravating - the AI could sometimes do really stupid crap, and sometimes you got screwed on initiative and it seemed like your NPC allies died before you could do anything.

The opening felt a little too gonzo at first. Big illithid invasion where you plane-hop to the Nine Hells is a bit much especially for someone not really well-versed in D&D lore, but I understand what it was going for. It tried to create a main story arc that every character regardless of alignment or personal backstory wants to fulfill - staying alive lest you turn into a nasty squid-creature. By saddling you with a cast of characters with the same ticking clock over their heads (and the mystery of why you haven't converted already), it gets you stoked into going out and digging into the main quest. The hand-waive of the delayed conversion is clearly meant to also provide a Watsonian reason why your character can long rest and spend time dicking around on sidequests like any good RPG, but the actual lore reasons service the story far more than Bethseda's "Find Your Missing Family Member But Also Do Literally Everything in the Wasteland" main plot of their Fallout entries.

Act I serves to both flesh out the world and later conflicts and recreate the exploration-based feeling of early Baldur's Gate. Faerun is a place with its own specific lore, and while Bioware might have expected many people that played Baldur's Gate to know about the Forgotten Realms (although given its hit status, they were probably delighted to be wrong about that), Larian knows that gaming is far more mainstream over two decades later and so needs to spend some time immersing the players in the unique cosmology of Faerun itself. Little things like "hyenas can worship the demon lord Yeeonghu and give birth to gnolls" is a nice fascinating piece of horrible lore that is visually presented well on the screen. Auntie Ethel was a delightful little sidequest that was acted well. The Underdark is a bit too overexposed, but the questing and map design were fine, including a fun little puzzle boss in the Adamantine Forge. There's a good blend of quests from puzzles like the Arcane Tower. The main quest is fairly binary good-and-evil, but that's standard fare for D&D. The tiefling refugees are clearly the morally right thing to do, and it's only really secret Shadow Druid Kagha that makes things only slightly grey. Pretty much everyone in the goblin camp is a piece of garbage, only the Priest of Loviatar redeems himself primarily by being hilarious.

Where the moral ambiguity comes to is in the companion characters. In Baldur's Gate I, the many party members were almost completely interchangeable save for some light flavor dialogue. Khalid and Jaheira mattered to the main story, as did Imoen, but you didn't need to take them if you didn't want to. Baldur's Gate II learned from this, every character has their own companion quest that usually ties in with one of the major stronghold-type quests. This isn't the case in Baldur's Gate 3, Larian has clearly invested effort to building these characters, from the morally-upstanding to the callous and practical. Each of the characters have their own opinion, but spend time doing their quests and they generally seem to warm up to you. All of the origin characters have their own long-form quests, while the other characters that join later have quests they're involved with and quests you need to do in order to recruit them (cleaning the Shade-Touched lands, not getting Jaheira killed by the Cult of the Absolute). For the most part, the characters are a little cliché but well done and well-voice acted. Shadowheart acts as a nice little introduction to Selune and Shar, another fun piece of Forgotten Realms cosmology that essentially asks if you're playing good or evil. Astarion's quest is "do the obviously extremely evil ritual or not." Wyll angsts a little too much about the cost of dealing with devils when everyone knows that when you do deal with them, they fuck you over. His lack of regret is honestly more refreshing than when he does feel the sting, I would have liked for Wyll to play that part up a bit more before starting the painful consequences later on; having someone know the other shoe is coming but not have it show up for a third of the game would have been pretty refreshing. Karliah is just a big old sweetheart, a normal trope but an enthusiastic one, solid barbarian trope all around. Lae'zel takes a bit of working to get to know her, but since any good illithid story would deal with the githyanki, having her along is a welcome change of pace, especially when you dissect her story and realize that she's putting on a front - she's a kid trying to act tough because she's a kid that knows she's facing doom, which then segues nicely into shattering the illusion of just how awful Vlaakith is - when Lae'zel finds out she is crushed but shows spirit enough to save the githyanki instead of wallow. Gale at first seems annoying and flippant along with eating my magic items, but eventually you learn about Karsus's folly, the nature of arcane magic, and the fickleness of Mystra.

The other characters aren't as well-developed, which is a pity. Halsin seems like a decent enough chap, just a guy trying to do the best he can. The two characters I found the weakest were ironically enough, supposed to be the strongest because they already were established: Minsc and Jaheira. Jaheira just doesn't seem like herself, there are no good roasts like the classic: "You are amusing, in a 'what the hell is wrong with you' kind of way," like there was in Baldur's Gate. Jaheira in Baldur's Gate faced down dragons and gods, yet she's comparatively fragile (and her own epilogue was ignored). Minsc is shallow, the humor in Minsc is that he's a bit of a punchline, whereas here it's just referential humor regarding Boo. Other returning characters get it even worse: Sarevok and Viconia are specifically brought back to show how much they've regressed, undoing some of Baldur's Gate's best writing. Sarevok was a tormented soul, unsure of what to do after coming back, but he goes back to his old tricks regardless of what I did, which just feels...careless. Sarevok was more than just a glowing-eyed spiky boss monster that he was in BG1, to have him returned to that was dull and uninspired. Viconia had some hints of her self in her regrets for destroying the previous Sharran enclave, but is still happy to be a boss battle for no other reason than to conclude Shadowheart's questline.

Whereas Act I was a bit scattershot, Act II benefitted from incredibly tight focus. JK Simmons did a phenomenal job as Ketheric, and the pacing and threat within the Shade-Cursed Lands is well-earned. You have clear objectives, the antagonists are always properly menacing, and there's still enough time to explore the Monastery and the githyanki creche. You have to do so anyway to start learning more about the Astral Prism, but the githyanki questline comes into its own with Lae'zel's betrayal at the hands of Vlaakith, they actually feel like part of the story and they begin to set up Prince Orpheus's later introduction into the story. It can be a bit jarring going from handling the Nightsong to immediately storming the Moonrise Towers, but it allows Shadowheart's midpoint arc to handle itself. The fight against Z'rell on the bottom layer isn't bad, although the Harper AI keeps doing its best to have Jaheira kill herself. The fight with Ketheric is great from a mechanical standpoint, the avatar of Myrkul fight is a bit easy given it's supposedly an avatar of a god, but Simmons sells Ketheric.

The surprise twist that the Dead Three have enslaved an Elder Brain has me thinking: "Alright, this is a decent enough plan." The Absolute's war creates plenty of death that empowers Myrkul, cults of murder spring up to empower Bhaal, and Gortash takes control of the city and subjects those within it to Bane's tyranny, exporting Bane's power after his success and creating an empire to super-charge Bane. By implanting worshippers of other gods, they deny souls and petitioners due to D&D cosmology which weakens them. That's fine, except all three of their Chosen are looking to betray each other, which would destabilize the Crown's control over the Netherbrain. Gortash at least tries to adjust to his plan falling apart by allying with the player character, grabbing Orin's Netherstone and reuniting the Three to reassert control over the Elder Brain. Orin, however, seems largely to fall into Stupid Evil territory, just happy to murder people for no reason. The revelation that the Dark Urge was the original Chosen of Bhaal actually makes this work since according to the lore, even with the Dark Urge's murderous impulses, they kept them in check. It further cements that the Dark Urge is the canon main character, and it ties neatly back to Baldur's Gate, when you find out in Throne of Bhaal that the Bhaalspawn do have an instinct to kill - one that wasn't expressed mechanically in the game save for the fact that you will easily have a four-figure body count when all's said and done. But that introduces a further wrinkle, Orin was unstable, and if they needed this plan to succeed, they should have opted for Sarevok, not Orin who can't think ahead.

Act III suffers from rushed execution. Several of the climatic moments in the final act are undercut either by bad programming or poor encounter design. Gortash's confrontation is shockingly easy, if you grab the grenades you get free attacks - it's so easy it's almost confusing. Orin's confrontation as the Dark Urge is narratively satisfying but a single Luck of the Far Realms attack can positively melt her health. This isn't the case for all of the fights - when the encounters are good they are really good. The House of Hope was an incredible level from start to finish, capping off in a great fight against Raphael that combines handling the cambions, burning down the pillars, and trying to survive against Raphael (at least until you find out that he has a crappy Wisdom and the game become keep him under Otto's Irresistible Dance or Hold Person), but even that works out well narratively after confronting his incubus lover and realizing that Raphael is a hedonist and thus would have a lower will save.

The final climax of the Emperor vs. Orpheus suffers from incredibly bad writing. The Emperor already has massive lore problems, such as *somehow* miraculously getting off the Island of Balduran so he can become a mindflayer in the Moonrise Towers, without even the barest acknowledgement why, or how. He says: "I never lied to you," except that he *always* lies to you, and when you call him out on it, he basically says: "no, that's just illusion. Not the same thing." At the finale, he's just stupid though. The Emperor has been positioned this entire time as wanting to avoid the slavery of the illithid hive mind, and yet in the final confrontation, if you opt to free Orpheus, he immediately decides to side with the Netherbrain and willingly consign himself to slavery. No chance to see if Orpheus will side with you, not even the ability to say "look, if he doesn't play ball, you can snack on his brain at your heart's content." Nope, he sides with the guy he's been specifically dreading this entire time, something he was so terrified of that he stopped at nothing to stop it. It only makes sense as a binary choice for a video game, to pick which faction rather than actually rewarding the creativity you were previously celebrated for all game.

The mandatory ceremorphosis was likewise stupid. "Somebody's gotta squid up, don't ask questions, it just has to be done. Netherbrain is too smart." For a game that has been giving you creativity this whole time, the entire point is "welp, someone has to make a sacrifice," is just an arbitrary shoe-horned thing to make, to up the stakes for dramatic tension. Why we simply can't use Omelum if we rescue him from the Iron Throne, despite the fact that he has acknowledged teleportation powers? No that's simply foolish, it undercuts the dramatic flair of the ending, I guess. We have to have our tragic ending, but a mandatory tragedy *isn't* tragic, especially when it's railroaded like this. It feels like the Mass Effect 3 ending, a rushed mess out of nowhere. At least Cyberpunk 2077's ending has you trying to fix the problem, only to find that you probably can't, and at best the Nomads might be able to help you or you sell your soul to Arasaka. That actually has some tragedy - do the safe thing and survive, or try to find a solution even if it might not work, and it ends with you wistfully looking out into the horizon. To add to the shoddy nature of it, when you reach your allies, they treat you as if it was you that did it, regardless if Karliah took the bullet to save herself from the Infernal Engine. So much promise and potential, ruined by the rush to get it out the door.

So overall it was a solid game, hampered by a lackluster ending.

Thanks for the question, Anon.

SomethingLikeALawyer, Hand of the King

[creatureculture]

The podcast might go down and you should be mad about it

Hey, hi, this is Colin. We haven’t talked in a long time. If you still follow Creature Culture, I hope you enjoy Gnoll’s occasional reblogs of cool monster art. I normally just watch her throw a cool lizard creature onto the feed every once in a while, but something happened today that I feel like I have to post about and probably should have posted about a year or more ago when it would have really mattered.

It’s looking like the federal hearing over whether or not the Internet Archive has committed book piracy is going to rule in favor of five incredibly rich publishing houses. If punitive damages are high this could likely destroy IA and everything it does entirely, regardless of whether or not content hosted on it is deemed illegal. What does that have to do with us? Well, Creature Culture is entirely hosted via the Internet Archive.

Back in 201x or whenever Gnoll and I decided to make the podcast neither of us had made one before. I’d guested on a few shows before and had some background skills for audio editing but that was the extent of it. We were also both too desperately poor to even afford the $10 a month for hosting fees. So what did we do? Well, we stuck my wife’s yeti microphone in a cardboard box lined with a bathrobe and some towels, I pestered a couple of friends for good presets to gate background noise, paid a dollar fifty for the intro/outro music that to this day I still love, and then we uploaded it to the Internet Archive. Because the Internet Archive will let you host any work be it a painting, novel, or even a podcast about decolonizing monster cultures in RPGs on the internet for free. It’s not the best hosting: if the show had ever gotten popular we would have had to actually invest money into getting it real webspace. And it doesn’t even do everything you need for a podcast that a website could do: a big reason the show has a tumblr is because tumblr at the time was the only way to generate an RSS feed we could submit to iTunes for free.

The important thing is that Gnoll and I had a cool idea as an excuse to spend time together and thanks to the Internet Archive we got to share it with all of you instead of just blathering at each other alone over a kitchen table. I’m sure there are those of you out there that wish when we were making the show we monetized it in some way so you could have helped support us. It’s kind of a natural instinct to share things you love out of the kindness of sharing not to get anything from it but from knowing that others are better for it and that it’ll make it easier for them to share the things they love with you, too. That’s what the Internet Archive is all about: making sure that our digital reality has at least one space explicitly built around sharing.

A bunch of publishing magnates looked at that, ignored the fact that most people who “pirate” a thing and like it will go out of their way to pay for it, and decided to tear down one of the sole archival institutions in the digital space. Creature Culture is hosted there. We put it up there in the best of faith of with IA to distribute it. Hell, we could have and maybe even should have used IA’s own process to put it up under creative commons. But if IA gets taken down for “lending too many books” because it doesn’t want to cave to some draconian capitalist bullshit to line a publishing execs pockets, the podcast goes with it. Maybe I’ll be able to get the show rehosted or maybe I won’t. Either way, we hosted the podcast on the Internet Archive because that archive should exist until the death of mankind. I wish I had a call to action of what you can do. When I find one I’ll post one. But in the meantime, please, just get mad and get ready.