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The mood around the camp upon our return from the mansion was joyful but tinted with a touch of sorrow. My comrades and I were relieved that our companion had finally rid himself of his burden. His fears of chase and death disappear with his former master. But I knew the price of this sacrifice, we all knew it.
That evening he received a lot of support, we were proud of him. But we could also read, in the blink of an eye, the weight of his sacrifice, his freedom regained but condemned to roam the shadows until the end of time. And the pain and sorrow caused by Cazador still haunting him. I had noticed it and Halsin too and we exchanged a number of concerned looks that evening.
Later, when everyone had returned to their beds, Astarion came to see me, the light of the moon shining on his alabaster skin and his silver hair, enough to make even Selunée jealous.
He asked me to accompany him, looking serious and sad at the same time. My heart sank, he had this look only when he offered me his vulnerability, showed me who he really was under the mask of a refined dandy.
I couldn't help but respond kinkily at his proposition. An amused and knowing smile appeared on his face. Yes it would be serious but... for afterwards it's up to us to decide, he answered.
His steps led us into the cemetery of Baldur's Gate, I smiled at the idea of the cliché that our couple formed at that moment, but I tried not to let anything show.
He cleared a grave of its vegetation, no one had taken care of it for a long time. His tomb, among many others but nevertheless isolated by its lack of maintenance, its resident forgotten. My heart tightened. And then he told me his story, his suffering, his loneliness like never before. I had seen the price of his misdeeds at the manor and had still chosen to help him, he knew my support and placed his trust in me with almost total abandonment.
Tears welled up, every fiber of my being burned to hold him in my arms. But while he was lost in his thoughts, I preferred to place a flower on his grave, a slightly silly romantic act, but the idea that this grave had remained empty of all love for so long had suddenly become unbearable to me. A smile from him, and he said a mockery to hide the emotion I read in his eyes.
This act touched him more than he imagined and I knew, as he raised his head towards me, that his love had reached a new milestone. The sadness had turned into a fierce passion but tinged with gentleness.
The evening took another turn. I gave my consent to the rest of what was going to happen, a passionate kiss and he pinned me to the ground, spreading my leg so our pubis were caressing. On the beaten earth, in the cold and humid atmosphere of this cemetery our breaths mingled, his cold skin could not extinguish the blaze of mine. A whirlwind of emotions in his eyes and at that moment nothing existed but the two of us. His kisses, sometimes biting, sometimes gentle, left after their passage a bite colder than the night, I felt his path on my body.
I wanted to give them back to him one by one but he held me down and added in a burning voice: “Let me show you my love, let me give you the pleasure that your support and your unfailing love brings me”. He closed his eyes, straightened above me, opened them and darted his glowing eyes into mine. And in a sigh: “Tonight I want you to be the center of my world, let me feast upon your warmth, your desire, your love. Tonight I want all of you, I want to give you the pleasure that my body feels for you. Let me get lost in you”.
“Always my love” I replied in one breath, my breathing heavy. What followed was passionate, our bodies united and our mouths merged, stifling our moans while our desires and our passion exploded.
We eventually got up and saw in our eyes that we wanted more for tonight. “Hmm, my back and the dirt floor don't mix well, I prefer our layer and the warmth of our blankets. The setting is very romantic but I'm not sure I could do an act again in these conditions” I added with a laughing tone. He also laughed: “In that case, let’s hurry, I can’t wait for more.”
The return was much faster, our hands searching for each other's bodies under our clothes. Staying dressed until bedtime was a most arduous task. But once the door closed, we took the time to slowly undress ourselves. He seemed satisfied with the marks he had applied to my body, a smile of contentment and eyes with that special flame. I took him by the chin, kissed him gently and added “can I also adorn your body with my desire?” With a gentle look, he rested his cheek in my hand, and in a breath “I’m just waiting for that”.
He lay down and I covered him with my body beginning to kiss him eagerly on the corner of his mouth slowly going down his body. I spared no part of it, and as I focused on his increasingly heavy breathing, I felt his skin quivering under my touch. Closest to the groin I felt him arch, an unconscious plea for me to attend to his crotch. I preferred to maintain his frustration and continue along his legs. “If you hope to make me lose my mind, you are not far from it” he said in a breath. Still ignoring his quivering cock, I went back towards his mouth but I made sure that my body barely touched the sensitive tip, letting him feelling my warmth. A strand of my hair caressed the wet and reddish tip, pulling a frustrated moan from him. I looked into his eyes, his expression was amused, impetuous and feverish. We kissed and I slowly lowered my pelvis. I took my time to devour his length, tearing rasping moans from both of us. And as I sat on him and started moving, I offered him the long awaited deliverance.
The rest of the night was passionate but also very tender, finally discovering ourselves completely. And as sleep began to dawn on me, I heard him whisper a “thank you” and a wet feeling where his cheek touched my neck, but I was already sinking into sleep.
The next day the sun was already high when I woke up, but no one was by my side. I opened the tent door. Some people were still at the camp, others had left. I met Jehira's gaze, who seemed very amused by what she had heard last night. But no trace of Astarion and no one seemed to see him.
After several hours I worried a bit. The day and evening of yesterday had stripped him of his shell and left him in a form of vulnerability that, I felt, had affected him more than he wanted us to see. I found Halsin who hadn't seen him too. Both worried, we set off on the paths around the camp in the countryside and forest. We had walked some of them and I remembered one in particular which had made Astarion stop because it led to a magnificent view of the city and its surroundings.
We found him standing facing the world, the sun illuminating him decorating his silhouette with a golden aura. He seemed lost in his contemplation. It was only when we reached him that he seemed to notice us, his eyes had reddened but his tears had dried up. He looked at the sun, contemplated the life he would soon no longer have but also facing his 200 years of abuse and slavery, he had finally begun his mourning and his pain transfixed us. With one movement we kissed him and wrapped our arms around his body. We collapsed and he crouched in our arms, crying. We stood around him as he held on to us, shaking with sobs. We shared his pain and his mourning, crying in unison. After a while and a lot of tears, the crisis passed and we returned to camp hands in hands. Near the destination his gaze quickly regained its scrutinizing and smug air, and the rest of the day followed its course.
Everything seemed as usual but I noticed that a lot of people around the camp were offering more attention to my other half. A friendly hand on the shoulder, a muscular hug for Karlach (which he returned with hesitation), a stinging remark tinged with affection to which he responded in the same tone.
Another one of my companions who made peace with his past but at what cost. I looked around the camp. Lost souls, met by chance, that history, pain, but also joy and this new friendship had united. Another day and one more step towards the end of our ordeal and the annihilation of our enemy. But for now let's enjoy this moment of peace a little bit longer.