[Couronne] The gift of life II

[Arkash]

48th of Frost, 4621

For most of his waking hours since the day Arkash had single-handedly obliterated and devoured the entirety of Degare’s staff, he’d been occupied with what he’d only refer to as ‘a project’ in the study that he’d initiated Degare within. Though he’d asked Degare and Lucia to leave his work be, he’d certainly taken measures to ensure no solid information could be gathered from the various pieces of evidence he left scattered about the various surfaces. All one could conclude was that it involved Necromancy.

It was late into the night that Arkash joined the elf under the covers. Something of a giddy smile pulled at his features as he climbed into bed and crawled a little closer to the elf before he wrapped his arms around the taller man from behind, and pulled his chest to rest flush to Degare’s back. He rested that way for a while longer as the night began to yield to the start of the day.

Around the time that the first rays of sun touched his skin, he began to rouse from his brief sleep. The catch of light in his eyes stirred him briefly, and with willpower alone, he forced his groggy mind to wake while he clung to the elf.

A smile began to crawl across his features while he stared, then pressed a gentle kiss to the back of his neck. His hand drifted up the elf’s body to gently squeeze his pectoral while he pressed his front flush to the elf’s back. If Degare did not immediately begin to wake, Arkash would continue to press gentle kisses to his fair-skinned neck until he did wake, and even then, he’d continue to shower the older man with his affection.

When he finally stopped, he lowered his mouth a little to redirect his morning breath and spoke a soft “Good morning, Cariad,” with a distinct softness to that last word, which was spoken in a tone that all but dripped with endearment.

“…And happy Birthday,” he spoke with a rise to his tone, and squeezed the man a little tighter with a press of his palm on the elf’s chest. “I made you something,” he spoke softly, voice weighty with sleep. “It’s not breakfast in bed because I’m… a terrible cook," he confessed with a yawn that drew tears to his eyes. "But I think it’s even better… than food…” he continued with a blatant attempt to make the offer more appealing in his tone; a tone that was muffled by the encumberment of exhaustion that accompanied a lack of sleep.

A moment longer was spent basking in the morning’s warmth before he fell silent, still clinging to the elf while his sleep resumed.

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[Degare]

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Being that Lucia was naturally a snoop with insatiable curiosity– and it was literally her job to ensure her Veir’s safety– she did, at one point, slip into the room the little Necromancer had been working in to inspect whatever it was he was doing. She was largely ignorant to what one did as a Necromancer so what she saw within the room, amongst his belongings, really didn’t mean much to her as a whole. Careful not to actually touch or disturb anything, she did manage to glean enough information from the strange collection of objects and misshapen flesh that whatever it was, at least, was not harmful. Satisfied, she leaves. Knowing Arkash wanted this to be a secret, she did hold her tongue when it came to saying anything to Degare himself…not that she’d really have anything of substance to say anyways.
—

In the earlier hours in the morning, the sun had risen high enough into the sky so that its rays shone brightly in a few lines through the curtains of the room. On the Veir’s end, the shafts of light missed his face and allowed him to continue to rest, though the man who lay behind him was not quite as lucky in that regard. Degare’s mind wasn’t that deeply stowed away in his rest and as his lover stirred and began to move, his dream started to blur as the sensations of soft lips and gentle kisses began to pull him back to reality.

Amber eyes drift open around the time that the other had groped at his chest and his breathing deepens as his consciousness returns to him. Always a little lost immediately after waking up, he doesn’t immediately react, instead simply rolling his body back a bit into that of his partner's, bringing them ever closer, clearly enjoying the affection he was being given.

As Arkash’s words reach him, a smile, immediately bright, is drawn across his features– narrowing his eyes alongside a pleased chuckle. Before he could respond, the other man continued, wishing him a happy birthday. For a moment, the pale elf was a little confused. He didn’t actually recall ever telling the younger man that today was his birthday. While curious about how he learned this, he was more just surprised that Arkash had even cared enough to acknowledge this. His words were heavy with sleep but woven with a bright tapestry of affection and adoration, Degare was honestly a little overwhelmed, but it made him feel so impossibly good to be treated this way.

After a few moments of just enjoying Arkash’s touch, he realized that the other may or may not have fallen back asleep…or at least was starting to. Rolling himself over now, he presses his lips to the top of the smaller man’s head and lingers there for a few moments before pulling back not more than an inch and speaking. “Cariad, huh? Where’d you learn that…and…what have I done to earn such a name from you?” His own voice is sleepy, but it's warm with his own abundant adoration for the other man. The elf presses the palm of the arm that’s squished into the bed against his partner’s chest and gently rests his other hand on his shoulder, running his thumb in gentle circles over the other’s smooth skin. “You…made me something? I’d love to see it…whenever we manage to drag ourselves out of bed, at least.” Words spoken with soft laughter at the end as he pulls his lover into a tight embrace.

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'Thoughts'
"Common Tongue/Speech"
"Raillen Tongue/Speech"
"Silvain Tongue/Speech"

[Arkash]

“…Cariad?” Arkash asked with a deep breath as he once again stirred from his slumber. He began to smile as his eyes half opened, and he breathed a satisfied sigh from his nose. “From me mum an’ dad,” he explained in a different dialect as he bumped his nose to the Veir’s. “Er… My mother and father, I mean,” he elaborated. “They spoke Vithmi,” he added as he began to move, only to pause as the lord brushed his shoulder with his thumb, and recede into the covers. He smiled a little while he returned that adoration in his gaze, and nodded.

“I did,” he answered somewhat absent-mindedly, then widened his eyes as though realization had struck. “Oh, I did!” He called in a fit of excitement and immediately pulled away from the warmth of Degare’s embrace. The covers didn’t last long at all, as Arkash was quick to leap from the confines of the bed and bare his skin to the cooler morning air without regard for comfort.

He was a blur as he began to dress in those same clothes he’d brought with him, and looked to the elf while he scrambled into something more appropriate. “It’s the perfect gift; at first I thought it was broken, but it’s actually even better than I thought!” he began to explain.

Quickly, he slid to the elf’s side of the bed and hurriedly pried him from the sheets. The moment Degare was on his feet, Arkash once again wrapped his arms around the man’s waist and pressed his cheek to his chest in a tight hug before he loosened the embrace, looked up, and grinned. “Why… Do I feel as though I’m more excited for your birthday than you?” He asked with something of a rise to his brows above the tiredness in his eyes. A grin pulled at his lips while he exhaled deeply, closed his eyes on the verge of falling asleep again, then shook his head awake once more.

“Come on, before you convince me to sleep in,” he said with a bright smile, took the elf by the hands, and began to guide him to the door thoughtlessly.

If Degare stopped him, or if he didn’t, Arkash would guide him through the estate on his way to the study, then stop at the door. Arkash seized the handle, paused, then looked up at the elf. “Cover your eyes,” he demanded. “No peeking.”

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[Degare]

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Slow to wake and slow to move in the morning, the Ferrier was always a bit reluctant to get up especially when cuddled close to someone he cared about like this. When Arkash voiced that he’d learned the word from his parents and that it was Vithmi, the elf was confused for only a few moments before he drew the connection between the two languages. There were other words they shared…so it’s not as if it didn’t make sense. Either way, the pet name warmed him and made him feel special in the eyes of the little Rathor.

As soon as Degare reminded his partner of the gift he’d supposedly made, the other man immediately lit up with an unexpected amount of excitement. As much as the pale elf wanted to drift back into sleep’s sweet embrace wrapped in the arms of his lover, he did find Arkash’s enthusiasm to be utterly adorable. The Veir was languid in his movements but did manage to pull some clothing from the wardrobe that was across from the foot of the bed and began to dress himself as well while sitting near the edge of the bed.

He’d only gotten through about half of the buttons on his shirt before the young Rath spoke more about the nature of his ‘perfect’ gift and pulled the tired elf the rest of the way out of bed. The Ferrier couldn’t really complain as Arkash’s arms wrapped around him once more and the man looked up at him with eyes alight and an utterly precious expression on his cute, boyish features. Degare couldn’t help but smile back down at him, his own features being much brighter now, if a bit bashful. “You might be…I’ve had trouble caring much about it in recent years. Not that your enthusiasm bothers me…It’s actually quite sweet. I appreciate it a lot, to be honest,” though his voice is still tired, the warmth of his affection and sincerity are still clear.

Freely allowing his lover to guide him, the two make their way through the estate and end up outside of the study door Arkash had been holed up in for a lot of the past few days. When the other asked him to cover his eyes, agreed and then closed them. As he heard the door open, “...if you’re wondering, by the way, I turn one hundred and two today.”

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'Thoughts'
"Common Tongue/Speech"
"Raillen Tongue/Speech"
"Silvain Tongue/Speech"

[Arkash]

The entire thing was a new experience to the young Rath; his lonely life in the bitter cold of Lorien's gutter was devoid of close relationships; the only birthdays he'd celebrated were that of his immediate family. He knew of their importance, and naturally, wished to treat his lover with just as much care and appreciation as he'd been given in his early years. So, he pulled out every stop he could and made his most diligent effort to make the day special for the elf, regardless of how many birthdays he'd had before.

Apparently, there was no time to allow Degare to fully dress; he had to receive his gift immediately. Arkash did smile a little as he dragged the older Elf around; making decisions and having others follow along with them was something he could certainly get used to. "That's going to change, by the way," Arkash said as he guided the elf through the halls. "I'll make sure you care about your birthday, even if it takes another hundred of them." A hundred years was difficult to grasp. In his mind, Degare had received a hundred celebrations of the same tradition and gods-only-knew how many gifts.

He had to up his game to outdo past celebrations, to give him a gift that he'd never received before.

He needed a starting point, however. He didn't know what his past birthdays had been like, how was he meant to compare?

The gift of life was surely an excellent place to start, he thought.

When they arrived at the door, Arkash delivered his terms, and Degare shut his eyes. As if to test, Arkash waved a hand before the elf's face to test if he reflexively backed away; to test if he was peaking. When no reaction came, Arkash grinned and opened the door. "A hundred and two?" he asked with wide eyes. A cheeky grin pulled at his features, unseen to the elf. "You don't look a day over eighty-five, my dear," he said with a smirk, then led the man into the darker room.

"This way," he said to guide the elf, "forward, forward... Then a little to the left or we'll run into the table... And stop." Arkash instructed, then moved to turn the elf a little to the left. "Stay right here, keep your eyes closed," he said, then stepped away.

Degare was left in momentary silence before the pull of the drapes saw the morning's light flood the room. An amber ray shined perfectly on the placement of the table, which Arkash had set up deliberately. Next, a cupboard was opened, followed by a slide of glass on wood. The placement of that same glass was made on the fanciful, embroidered table cloth that covered the surface of the table, and Arkash stepped away.

"Alright," he said with a conclusive air. "You can open your eyes now..."

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[Degare]

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At this point in time, the Ferrier’s birthdays were mostly celebrated in the company of a few closer Valran and members of his family, but they were never that exceptional of affairs since Averre’s passing– this was in large part due to the fact that he’d considered himself such a fuck up of a person for letting the other man die that he didn’t really want other people celebrating the day he was brought into the world. In this case, much as he genuinely did appreciate Arkash and his effort put in to make him feel special, he could feel the guilt pull at him all the same.

The softest of smiles pull at the corners of his lips when he hears the words, ‘I'll make sure you care about your birthday, even if it takes another hundred of them.’ On his end, the pale elf honestly believed it might take that many. The sentiment, however much he doubted such a thing would ever come to pass, did warm him.

With the first few notes of a light laugh, the smile on his face widens just a tad at his lover’s comment. “Mmm…really? Not the number I was going for, but I suppose it’s good enough,” his voice is light, velvet timbre infused with his amusement. Following Arkash’s directions blindly, he steps through the threshold of the room and stops where the other tells him to. He really didn’t know what to expect, but given the younger man’s enthusiasm he’d put a lot of effort into it, at least.

When instructed to do so, the Veir opens eyes of red amber, a look of soft curiosity reflected within. Before him was the table he’d come to expect in that room, but on it was something else entirely. With a slight cant to his head, he eyes the thing encased in the glass before him, a gentle ray of golden sunlight shining down upon it. The look of his eyes is now one of bright fascination as he approaches the table and leans down, hands resting on his thighs, to get a closer look at the thing within the glass. It certainly was not anything he’d seen before…and Arkash said he…made it?

As it dawns on him, “...Oh, with Necromancy, then…?” words spoken almost musingly as if answering his own question with a question. After posing this rhetorical inquiry, he moves to free the thing from its glass chambers to let it crawl around between his open palms. The expression the Ferrier wears is one of pure delight, as if he were a child again given exactly what he’d asked for– only he’d asked for exactly nothing.

While the little creature waddled around in his left palm, he moved his right hand to gently poke at it with his fingertips and almost pet at its squishy little back. As he observes it, the little thing pauses its movements and appears to wheeze almost. Degare stares at it with obvious intrigue, and when it does end up throwing up a small amount of blood he raises a brow and looks to Arkash. “Is that supposed to happen? It’s so…precious.” His voice sounds as enamored with it as his face looks.

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'Thoughts'
"Common Tongue/Speech"
"Raillen Tongue/Speech"
"Silvain Tongue/Speech"

[Arkash]

Eager anticipation captured his gaze when he told the elf to open his eyes, and Arkash squeezed his hands into fists as the elf first set eyes on his creation. The bright curiosity in the older man’s gaze was really quite warming; Arkash was then sure that the elf had never before received a gift like the one he’d made.

“Yeah!” Arkash replied to the rhetorical question with great enthusiasm. “I’ve wanted to use the Instinct Capturer for a while, but didn’t really have the motivation or an excuse to try it. Then I heard Lucia mention it was your birthday soon and snowballed from there,” Arkash explained with a gesture to the thing.

“I call it… a Thing,” he said with an air of mystery and a gentle wave of his hand in the direction of the captured beast. “But you can name it whatever, that’s just the… scientific genus,” he spoke with some degree of amusement in his smile, a glint of pride?

When Degare opened the jar, Arkash’s breath stalled as he watched the tiny creature fall from the confines of glass. It held for a moment while he watched the Thing begin to move and crawl across the larger man’s hands. Cautious curiosity lined his gaze as he lifted his eyes to Degare’s above pursed lips, which broke to a smile when he found the delight in the elf’s features.

His delight saw him pet the creature and poke its tummy, which Arkash hesitated at, and continued to hold his breath when the beast vomited the blood that had accumulated in its stomach. A slight laugh escaped him when Degare asked if that was deliberate. “Well... A little? I accidentally made the thing produce too much blood, which ruptured vessels and broke through the stomach lining. After I made the tissue Undead, the digestive system I’d made was basically useless, so I repurposed it to safely discharge the blood it makes,” Arkash explained in a manner that made it sound as though he knew what he was doing.

A soft sigh escaped him as utter relief washed through the fibers of his being. “…It doesn’t need to be fed, doesn’t need to defecate, doesn’t even need sleep really… All it does is waddle around and vomit blood, but that might come in handy for you and your newest mark,” Arkash spoke with a wink. “A tiny blood dispenser; my first attempt at creating life... Is your birthday present. Happy birthday, Degare.”

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[Degare]

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Amber irises bright with their own excitement flit between the little Thing and its creator, the other’s enthusiasm further amplifying his own. As Arkash spoke, a glint of realization passes over the Veir’s face when he mentions where he’d figured out when his birthday was. “Oh, you overheard that comment of hers? How sweet of you to do this for me on such short notice,” from the way his smile met his eyes and the abundant warmth woven through the soft velvet timbre of his voice, it was obvious that both the gift and the gesture of getting him anything at all made Degare genuinely happy. When the excitable little Rath continues with an explanation of what it is, the Ferrier notes the little bit of pride in the other’s features at his own creation. "Might take me a bit to come up with a different name considering how indecisive I can be...what you've come up with also has its own charm," words spoken with an amused tone.

As he continues to inspect the creature and offers his inquiry about the intention behind the blood it produces, Arkash’s explanation indicates that it was an accident reworked into something intentional. “Is that so? What a lovely way to repurpose that little flaw, then.” The Ferrier found this little trait to be somewhat cute on its own but the blood itself wasn’t totally lacking in function– as indicated with his lover’s continued explanation of it. "How fitting that you'd give me the Blood Mage's mark and then a little beast that endlessly dispenses blood for me," he speaks with a cant to his head indicating he finds the connection between the two things a combination of convenient and endearing.

When Arkash finished speaking by wishing him happy birthday, Degare could almost feel more of his intricately set up walls meant to keep people from getting close to him crumble further away. “What an honor it is to receive the very first creation of yours, truly. I also genuinely appreciate the sentiment on its own…this really does mean a lot to me.” The whole time they were talking, the Ferrier had allowed the little creature to crawl back and forth between his hands.

After he spoke, though, he gingerly places it back in its little jar and turns back towards the other man. With a soft smile, he lowers himself down a bit so that their faces are at the same height and cups his lover's face in his hands, “Be careful with how sweet you are to me…I might get too attached,” the Veir speaks with light, bashful laughter as he leans forward to place a gentle, lingering kiss against the other’s lips.

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'Thoughts'
"Common Tongue/Speech"
"Raillen Tongue/Speech"
"Silvain Tongue/Speech"

[Arkash]

A nod was offered at the brief question of overhearing. It really was a wonder Arkash could recall anything at all that occurred in his frenzied state, but those words followed him. A slight grin pulled at his lips at the offered compliment toward his simple naming conventions, followed by a gentle shrug and a cant of his head.

A brief laugh rolled from his lips at the elf's observation. "...My thoughts exactly," Arkash said with a wink. "Though I just realized that you might prefer I cut you open when we practice... But I can still do that, don't worry," Arkash assured. "I'm sure I'll think of an excuse, and if not... Well, the fact that I want to make you bleed is reason enough, right?" He spoke with a smug grin that pulled at his features while he held his head high. "You really are cute when you're clinging to consciousness like that..." He trailed on.

"The honor is all mine, milord. I'm glad you enjoy my creation," Arkash spoke with a courteous bow that radiated his satirical demeanor. "Really, It's really nice that you actually like the Thing. I was worried you'd think it was dumb." His mind seemed to wander for a moment, as he briefly trailed off into space, then refocused his gaze on the Veir with a bright smile. "Maybe I'll make you more Things in the future, experiment a bit more and make some really unique creatures."

His eyes followed the placement of the Thing in the jar, then returned to Degare when he set the jar down. As the Veir bent down to cup his jawline with his hands, Arkash's eyes brighten several shades, and the smile that pulled at his lips grew all the warmer. His hands lifted to wrap the man's wrists while his face was cupped by the larger man, as though the little Rath needed the hold for stability. "Mmm..." Arkash hummed as the older man spoke his warning. "I think you're the one who should be careful; I can't imagine too many people would complain if their favorite food followed them everywhere."

A sly grin pulled at his features while he teased the Veir with unconventional flirting, then lidded his eyes to meet the Veir's lips in a conversely sweet display of affection.

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[Degare]

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Pointed ears perk and a brow raises as the Veir hears the words next spoken by his lover, lips parting to retort but he stays silent to let the smaller man finish his thoughts. He couldn’t help but laugh at the last comment, features shifting into something of an amused, bashful expression. “Cute, huh…? I…can’t really deny you. It is…mutually pleasurable an experience, then,” there really isn’t a witty way he can think to respond to this because Arkash is right. Being at the Dranoch’s mercy, clinging to life by mere threads, had a certain undeniable thrill to it. Plus…the care and affection shown to keep him breathing and happy alongside any wounds inflicted nearly negated the innate cruelty of it anyways.

The Ferrier’s amused expression breaks into soft laughter as the younger man continues to speak words laced with heavy sarcasm. When his tone does break into something more genuine, a brighter smile adorns Degare’s features, narrowing red-amber eyes in his evident happiness felt towards the sentiments the Rathor expressed. “I’d adore more of your creations. There’ll never be a need to worry about my reaction– especially with things like this. Your skill with necromancy is actually quite impressive and I’d like nothing more than to watch you continue on with that journey,” voice suffused with the warmth of his open adoration and admiration for Arkash’s endeavors with the magic.

Much as he was trying to be sweet and sentimental, his lover’s next comment broke his expression again as he laughed, pressing his lips to the other’s for a loving, lingering kiss before he pulled away to speak. “You’re funny…though I do hope my presence holds more value to you than just my taste,” words spoken with a coy smile accompanying an overall playful expression.

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'Thoughts'
"Common Tongue/Speech"
"Raillen Tongue/Speech"
"Silvain Tongue/Speech"