Pain and Pleasure

THE NEW YEARS SPECIAL!

Chapter 19.

Authors note: There is no proper word for the sauna benches in English, so that’s what I’m calling them. =P
They are “laude” in Finnish and are benches that are piled on top of each other like stairs and people sit on them while being in sauna (and yes, anyone who has been in a sauna can tell that sitting in a heated room is awesome and not strange at all =3).

~ ~ ~

Xir’ag arrived at the village just about the same time as the shops were opening and the people were running around in their daily haste. He waved hello to familiar people who recognized him while he was taking of his skis. The people of the village didn’t get scared of him anymore when they saw him come into the village, which made him happy. Some people still dragged their children inside, but all in all, Xir’ag felt more welcome than he had felt in his own drow house.

He placed the skis and the ski polls against the wall of the food shop and stepped inside. The store clerk was just carrying the steaming hot bread from the back and placing them onto the counter and smiled happily down at him. All of the human adults were taller than him.

“Good morning, mister Xir’ag. What would you be in need of today?”

“Just some bread and butter. And- ummm,” he flushed slightly red and turned his face to observe the shelves. “I need some wizard things,” he added, lifting a few candles from the shelf.

The clerk cocked her head and smiled. “And what would that be? The apothecary might have better wizard things than this store.”

Xir’ag smiled shyly and nodded. “You’re right. I’ll ask there.” He chose a large, freshly-baked bread and some other groceries before stepping out of the store.

Soon he was walking to the next house where the drugstore was located, or so the clerk had told him. He didn’t even know what an apothecary was. He knocked on the door and an elderly man opened it. He smiled nervously to the shocked look on the man's face. “I’m sorry to disturb you, but I heard you might have some wizard items here.”

The man flashed a toothless grin and led him inside. “We might have something useful here, though not many wizard things. And we are running out of some products because of the winter solstice.”

“Winter what?”

“You haven’t heard about the winter solstice?” the man looked surprised and hurried behind the counter to point at a sheaf of papers hanging on the wall. “It’s a big party to celebrate the longest night of the year. The sun won’t be rising for two whole weeks after that night and the village will be celebrating with bonfires, good food, dancing, and other programs. You two should really join us as you are now part of this village.”

Xir’ag beamed up at him, a huge smile on his face. “We would love to join if it’s ok with you and the other villagers. We like the dark.” He laughed softly and the man grinned again. “I reckon you do.” He put his big hand on Xir’ag shoulder in a fatherly fashion and guided him to the shelves. “Now, what was it you needed from here?”

“Some herbs, some spell items, and some sort of, um, lotions.” He glanced at the man, but he just started to tell what the bottles and boxes on the shelves were.

Soon Xir’ag had a bag full of items he needed and a bit more. The man had also given him a few books for free. They were old folk tales and mostly meant for kids, but Xir’ag was happy to receive such friendly gifts anyways.

He grabbed his skies and started to slowly head back to their little farm. His skiing was still slow and clumsy, but he was learning more every day. His exercises and good balance helped a lot.
The snow was so white it hurt his eyes badly and he was wearing a black hat with a veil in front to block some of the light out. But it seemed it was really becoming darker every day, the sun was rising later and going down sooner, already the sun was down most of the day. Soon the time of complete darkness would start.

This news would make Sajore very happy. He hurried home, singing old drow songs in the cold, beautiful, winter day and thinking about everything that had happened so far. He had experienced his first snow storm, his first sunny winter day, his first night in the hot sauna, and his first time ice swimming; a lot of new things since arriving. And he loved the versatility of the nature here, he couldn’t imagine ever getting bored of this new world they were housed in now.

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

Xir’ag rubbed at his hand. He had been practising his spells, and had just finished his usual lightning trick like he always did it. But this time it had not worked the way it was suppose to. Instead of flying a blue streak of lighting to a nearby rock, it had burned his palm. This was not good. He couldn’t control his magic the way he used to. But he had also been expecting this, he had heard about this, what would happen to drow magic on the surface, under the sun.

He had tried the spell several times before, during the months that they had spent on the surface. And instead of getting better, things were slowly getting worse, his every spell turning into something other than what it should have been. First it had been flashes that flared out before hitting anything, then they flew somewhere they were not meant to go and now they burned his hands, without ever getting away from his palms.

He had even talked about this with Sajore. And the conclusion they had come to, was that they had to find a wizard from the surface who could teach him how to control his magic in some other way. He was learning some small things himself, but he was not getting far without anyone giving him advice as to how he was supposed to do it. So, as soon as spring arrived, they would set things up so that they could take a little trip and travel to the big cities of the coast. They would search for a wizard who would be powerful enough to help him and who would agree to help a drow wizard, though that would not be easy, as far as he could imagine. It didn’t seem to go over well with humans that he was a drow. They were used to evil drow troops attacking villages and killing everyone around and they could see Xir’ag as nothing but a threat to them.

But as worried as the loss of his magical powers made Xir’ag feel, it did nothing to help to worry about it before it was springtime. The best thing he could do for now was concentrate on getting stronger with his other fighting skills. He was still quite an agile, fast fighter, even when he didn’t have his magic. He would need a good fighting pole - that’s what his weapon had been in the academy - but that would be difficult to get from here, since all the fighting pole’s they used in the Underdark where made stronger with magic. Again, he couldn’t do that. So, instead he had been practising his defence techniques and becoming more flexible and faster, so in a case of emergency he could at least dodge if he couldn’t fight back.

He stared at his burned hand for a while longer and then sighed deeply, stepping inside their house to greet Sajore. The sun was setting and it was only early afternoon. He smiled and pushed his thoughts away from his magic. Suddenly he heard a loud squeal from the yard and ran back out to see a black haired young girl run across the yard towards him. At first he was too shocked to do or say anything, then his lips curled into a wide smile and he ran to greet the waving, giggling vampire girl.

“Shaya! What are you doing here?”

They reached each other and before Xir’ag could stop Shaya, she was squeezing him and kissing his cheek, laughing and twirling around like a little tornado. He laughed with her, taking her hands as they started to spin. He saw the tall form of Yvain appear from the forest and come into their yard, carrying two huge bags with him. The man stretched his wide wings, shaking them clean from snow and watched the orange and red clouds on the sky.

“We just arrived and wanted to surprise you!” Shaya finally answered his question, running to take Yvain’s hand and dragged him closer. Yvain smiled lightly at Xir’ag and the drow smiled back widely.

“Wait till Sajore wakes up, he will be so happy.” Xir’ag giggled with Shaya and like from a sign, a sleepy, messy-haired vampire appeared to the door, rubbing his eyes. “What’s with all the ruckus?”

Then his eyes widened and he chuckled, walking to Shaya and lifting her up and hugging her. “What the hell are you doing here? Was this part of the honeymoon surprise? I wanted to be alone with Xir’ag!” he grumbled, obviously very happy to see her. He was almost laughing and as he put Shaya down, the girl poked him in the ribs, making him laugh aloud. Even Yvain was still smiling lightly.

Soon they were giving a tour on their little farm, stomping through the snow. Shaya ran around, trying to drag Xir’ag with her until he got tired and she had to go alone. When they arrived at their little lake, she stripped off her clothes and ran to the freezing lake, jumping through the water hole that the men were keeping open to get their water from. Xir’ag turned around with embarrassment from her boldness, Yvain looked slightly shocked, and Sajore was laughing so hard at everyone’s reactions that he had to hold his stomach.

When she got back from the freezing cold water, Yvain offered her dress back to her and she pulled it up, asking him to bind her corset from the back. The tall man kneeled behind her and did as told, without saying a word. Sajore and Xir’ag were both smiling at the cuteness of the couple.

Then it was time to find them a place to sleep. Sajore made it clear from the start that they would not allow them to sleep in the cabin. He was tired of Shaya spying on them and the way things were going with their rising interest in bondage, he would definitely not allow his perverted little sister to have such an open view of their private life. They would be sleeping in the sauna. It was warm, though small, but for two people it would be perfect.

They all went inside to warm up, gathering around the kitchen table, though nobody except Xir’ag was really feeling the cold. Even Yvain, as a fire spirit, could handle the cold weather quite well, though even he was dressed warmly. Xir’ag put a kettle on to warm himself and to make Yvain some tea, the vampires seemed to be fed well enough and agreed to go hunting a bit later. Now it was time to catch up.

“So, what are you doing here?” Sajore asked in his blunt way as Xir’ag sat next to him, holding a big cup of tea in his hands. He offered one to Yvain, who nodded and took it, immediately starting to sip the hot drink. Xir’ag wondered why it didn’t burn his mouth, then remembering that Yvain could handle high temperatures very well, being a fire spirit. His endurance for cold was good too, because he could heat himself up. But when it got cold enough, Yvain got clumsy and tired easily.

Shaya smiled at her big brother, putting her hands on the table excitedly. “We came to the winter solstice! I’ve always wanted to take part on it and now finally, with you two as our guides, we have decided to come.”

“She decided we come.” Yvain pointed out, setting his empty teacup onto the table.

Shaya kissed his cheek and laughed.

Sajore smiled. “So, how long are you going to stay after the party? It’s tonight.”

“We could stay a few days, but then we have to hurry back, things are getting a bit heated in our house. In fact, the whole Menzoberranzan seems to be boiling.”

The men looked serious as Xir’ag glanced at Sajore. He had left home, but couldn’t help wondering how his family was doing.

Shaya laughed. “Don’t you two worry about that. It’s your holiday, enjoy it. We can handle things down there.” She jumped up “Now, get us some blankets and sheets. I want to get the beds ready so we can go and hunt, I miss the surface!” Then she was already hurrying towards the door.

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

Sajore stood in front of the tall mirror, checking out his reflection in it. He was wearing black leather pants, black leather boots, a black tunic and black scarf to hide his neck. He also had a long, black wool coat. His face looked very pale.

Xir’ag stepped behind him and folded his hands around him, squeezing.

“Ready to go?” He asked smiling as the vampire turned around. He had been hiding from Sajore until this moment so his surprise would not be ruined. And it seemed it had worked. Sajore was practically drooling as he let his eyes drift over Xir’ag’s frame.

The drow was wearing black and red striped long socks, black breeches and red shoes. He had on a black vest over a thick, red tunic. But all of his clothes were still close-fitting and complemented his slender frame perfectly.

The vampire reached for his neck and pulled him into a passionate kiss. “Are you sure we want to spend the whole night with the people? And not here, at home, under the warm blankets? Let Shaya and Yvain go instead of us.”

Xir’ag chuckled and pushed him away softly. “My horny lover. We can spend one night with others.”

“But I don’t want to.” Sajore pouted.

Xir’ag giggled and dragged him out of the door and into the dark, brisk winter night where Shaya and Yvain were already waiting, playing snow-war in the yard. Or better, Shaya was practising throwing snowballs at Yvain, who batted them away with his wings. The vampire girl was squealing with glee.

Yvain looked happy to see the men finally come out. He was wearing a brown, warm tunic, a green wool scarf and his usual long pants. He had a funny, green hat on his head. Shaya was dressed in a long green velvet dress with a black coat over it. They both looked very festive and matching.
As soon as Sajore and Xir’ag got out of the house, Shaya was already running toward the village. The others followed behind.

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

They were halfway to the village when Sajore stopped Xir’ag suddenly, waving at Yvain to go on. The tall man shrugged and tried to catch up with Shaya. Sajore turned to face Xir’ag.

“You need to know a few things before we get to the village.”

Xir’ag cocked his head to the side curiously. “And what are those?”

“You must have already noticed all the little presents the women of the village are sending for us. They haven’t seen us all that well yet, so there haven’t been many, but after this night it might get worse.”

Xir’ag laughed softly and touched Sajore’s cheek “I don’t care about their presents.”

Sajore looked serious as he took a hold of his arm. “I know. But when those women woo on you, try to be polite and don’t say a word about us being an item.”

Now Xir’ag was starting to look hurt. “Why would I try to hide it?”

Sajore looked at him softly and smoothed his white hair. “You know I love you deeply and completely, but humans don’t accept relationships between men. I know they should not judge us because of it, but if we can, let’s not try to bring it up.”

“Andrei knows about us and he hasn’t been that shocked.”

“He was shocked, but he was also polite enough to hide it well. I’m sure he has not told anyone what he saw because he knows he would cause trouble.”

Xir’ag smiled a too drowish smile for it to mean anything good and Sajore laughed nervously.
“If it comes up, we will tell. We won’t lie, but if they won’t ask, we won’t bring it up. Okay?”

Sajore nodded and they started walking again. “Yes, that sounds good.”

Xir’ag looked at Sajore with a slightly angry smile on his face. “Was there anything else you wanted to warn me about?”

“Yes.” Sajore ran to him. “The women.”

Xir’ag stopped “The women?”

“Yes. In celebrations like this it’s a custom to show your abilities and at some point they will ask you to dance or sing. When they do, they will eat you alive if you aren’t careful. So-“

“Be careful?” Xir’ag finished for Sajore, arching his eyebrow. Sajore nodded, grinning sheepishly.

“You be careful too. When they hear your voice, they will try to rape you.”

Sajore laughed and wrapped his arm around Xir’ag’s shoulder. “Let’s watch over each other. I’m glad Shaya and Yvain are here to cause enough disorder for anyone to really notice us two.”

Xir’ag nodded.

Soon they caught up Shaya and Yvain. The small vampire woman was leading Yvain on a dance down the road. He looked very uninterested, but still kept dancing until she stopped and they all turned towards the village that was already so close they could hear the people’s voices.

It was loud in the streets of the village when they arrived. Huge fires where blazing everywhere and a big barn had been opened for dancing and dining, as it was too cold to stay out all night. But the kids were still running around outside and greeted the group happily when they arrived. They all stared at Yvain’s huge wings with their mouths gaping. Xir’ag almost laughed, being so happy that for once it was not him everyone was staring at.

Andrei burst out of the barn with a few other boys and greeted them with a happy smile, looking surprised when he saw the two new guests.

“I’m happy to see you here,” he said, obviously waiting for some sort of explanation. He offered them all a small lantern to carry the light with them. Everyone seemed to be carrying one.
Sajore introduced everyone quickly and soon Andrei ran away to spread the word about the new guests. People came from inside to peek out at the strange visitors.

As Shaya and Yvain stepped in to meet the other humans, the two men stayed outside, staring at the black sky. It felt strange that it was so dark and it was only afternoon. Xir’ag wanted to hold Sajore’s hand, standing a little way away from the vampire, looking slightly sad, not daring to touch him.

The sky was full of stars and blankness surrounded the village, but the main street was full of lights and happy people. Everyone seemed to be there.

Sajore glanced at Xir’ag, seeing the sad look on his upturned face and smiled softly. He hadn’t thought how hurtful it would feel for Xir’ag for not being able to show their feelings towards each other around the humans. He cursed at his own stupidity in his head. When had he ever cared what anyone else thought? If the humans didn’t approve… well, screw them. What could they do, turn their protectors away?

He stepped closer to Xir’ag, wrapping his arm around his narrow shoulders. The drow turned to look at him with wide eyes. Sajore smiled down at him, touching his face softly with his hand. “I’m sorry, my love. I was stupid; of course I want to show that I love you in front of everyone. I don’t want to hide it either.”

Xir’ag’s eyes softened and he leaned against the vampire’s body, smiling up at him and wrapping his arms around his waist. “Thank you.”

They stood outside for quite a while, listening to the excited humans and looking at the flaring lights making the snow sparkle and at the dark sky with its millions of tiny stars. Finally Sajore kissed Xir’ag softly and hand-in-hand they walked into the barn, noticing familiar people all around them. The booming voice of the head guard could be heard from the other side of the barn where long tables full of food were set. Andrei ran back in past them, hurrying behind a pretty girl with flushed cheeks. They saw Shaya dancing with a human man while Yvain sat on a bench as several little children tried to climb up his fiery wings.

There was music coming from all over, but it wasn’t very loud. There were flutes and drums and some instruments Xir’ag had never heard before. People were singing several different songs. It was a happy cacophony of sounds. The men wondered close to a group of people, listening to their singing competition. Xir’ag kept glancing hungrily towards the food tables until Sajore noticed his looks and with a laugh he reached for Xir’ag and walked with him to the food tables.

The women behind the tables greeted them with smiles and blushes, asking what they would like to eat. Xir’ag received a plate that he started to fill up, sometimes asking advice from the women. He didn’t like meats and picked only vegetarian foods. The women tried to give him meat and chicken legs and finally he did pick up one chicken leg to try, but he refused to touch the other meat.

Sajore found nothing to eat, not many humans liked blood that much. So he observed Xir’ag and the people in the barn. Many of them were casting curious glances in their direction, but none of them seemed hostile. Shaya and Yvain seemed to have settled down well. They were now together on the dance floor. Shaya had tossed away her long coat and was now wearing only her beautiful gown which seemed to attract many men to ogle her. Sajore felt proud of his little sister. Suddenly a little boy walked to Sajore, pulling on his pant leg. Sajore looked down and finally kneeled when the boy just stared at him. He cocked his head. “Did you have something to say to me?”

The boy stared at him with his big brown eyes and then laughed with his wide, toothless mouth, running away. Sajore looked after him with lifted eyebrows. A shadow cast over him and he stood back up to find the head guard, Mercury standing next to him. “I have something for you to eat, Mister Sajore,” he said with a serious face and signalled him to follow. Sajore shrugged, signalling Xir’ag to come closer. Xir’ag walked to them and Mercury greeted him merrily, telling that he would be borrowing Sajore for a while. Xir’ag smiled back, nodding and walking to a bench to eat. Soon Yvain joined him with a plate of food of his own. Shaya had gone after Sajore.

The big human was walking Sajore out of the barn as Shaya hurried after them. After a brief moment of confusion, Sajore introduced them and immediately Mercury allowed the girl to join them. They walked along the main street until they were next to an old, ramshackle house. Mercury opened the creaking door and stepped in, holding the door open for the vampires. It was warm and dark inside, but the lanterns they were still carrying cast enough light to see the whole room.
There was a big cage in the corner of the room and a worn figure lay on the bed inside it. Sajore walked closer to look in, not afraid of any violence towards himself, he would sense it and could defend himself against a mere human. Shaya followed him, staring at the man inside the cage.

“He has been a prisoner here for over a year. We set him loose once and he came back, trying to steal from the shops. We don’t know what to do with him. He is a bad man and has made threats against the children of the village so we cannot let him go anymore.”

Sajore looked at the big man standing behind him and then back into the cage. The man laid there lifeless, “And why are you telling us this?”

Mercury stepped closer to the vampires, handing Sajore a set of heavy keys. He didn’t dare to look into Sajore’s eyes. “You feed... from people. We have talked about this with others here and-“ the big man was silenced when a low growl came from the cage and the dark figure dropped to the floor on his knees.

“So these are my executors?” they heard him whisper. Finally the prisoner looked up and Sajore could see the mad glint in his eyes. He looked back without flinching. He heard the head guard stepping back and finally closing the door. They were alone with the prisoner.

Sajore reached for the lock on the door and opened it. He wouldn’t waste free food when it was given to him as a present and was sure Shaya would agree on that. He sensed his little sister behind him. But first he had to know he was not killing anyone who didn’t deserve to die. “What did you do to end up here for a whole year?”

“I stole a little girl. She was so sweet and innocent. But they caught me before I could even get out of the village.” He glanced at Shaya. “You are pretty too, if only you were a bit younger.”

Shaya laughed coldly. “Yeah, thousand and five hundred is a bit too much for a child rapist, huh?”

The man's eyes widened and he paled, finally realizing he was not faced with humans.

Sajore walked into the cell and knelt next to the trembling man, reached for his face and pulled him up roughly. The man let out a sound, he was shaking and reeked of fear, but still he didn’t cry out. He tried to fight back feebly. Sajore had to smile. “Then you deserve this,” he said as he sunk his fangs into the man’s throat and drank hungrily. It had been weeks since he had gotten to drink from a human and the taste was making him feel like he was drunk. It was sweet and still bitter and quickly filled him, waking his every sense and nerve.

It was very difficult to let him go before he could hear his heart stopping, but soon he offered the man to his sister. Shaya took the man's limp body into her small hands and drank the rest, smiling happily at Sajore. Not a drop of blood dripped on her pretty dress as she let the man's body fall to the ground. She wiped her mouth prettily, looking up at Sajore, who’s face was messy with blood. “Come on big brother, there’s snow outside so you can wash your face,” she laughed and they walked out, closing the door behind them.

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

Mercury was waiting for them outside the house and took the keys back from Sajore, looking questioningly at the vampires until he saw Sajore’s face and scrambled backwards. Sajore grinned and nodded to him, walking past him to wash his face in the snow and Shaya smiled, did a pretty curtsy, thanking for a delicious dinner. Her words made Mercury’s eyes widen, but soon the man was smiling back at her.

They located Xir’ag in a matter of seconds after stepping back into the heavily lit barn. There were even more people than before, but the dark skinned drow could easily be seen among them, even when he was one of the smallest people there. The children seemed very curious about him and a few women had sat next to the wizard on the long bench. He seemed slightly panicked as he nibbled at his food and tried to answer all the questions that were thrown at him. Yvain was sitting a bit farther away, squirming with little children. They were trying to climb to his lap and up his wings. He was calmly lifting them down one by one. As Shaya and Sajore approached him, he got up and the rest of the kids had to jump down. He looked slightly uncomfortable.

Sajore walked to the bench where Xir’ag was sitting, smiling widely. Rudely, he sat next to the drow, right in front of a pretty blond girl who was trying to lure Xir’ag for a dance. Several people were already dancing to the sound of whistles, clapping hands, and harmonica. Xir’ag smiled up at him as Sajore kneeled to ruffle his hair. The girls around them watched him with confused eyes and one of them laughed shyly at him, “Would you like to dance, since we can’t seem to convince your friend to join us?”

“I'd rather keep him company,” Sajore answered, smiling at the girl. His rude words made the smile drop from her face and she stood up with pink cheeks, dragging her friend away. Sajore leaned his forehead against Xir’ag’s shoulder. The drow chuckled as he munched on dried apple slices. “You were rather rude at them.”

“They were getting a bit too friendly for my liking,” Sajore purred, nudging the drow’s ear with his nose. Xir’ag nodded back. “I was starting to panic, but there was nowhere to go, so I just tried to act very small,” he chuckled nervously and looked up at Sajore, who circled a hand around his shoulders. “You’re a powerful wizard, don’t get scared of a few little girls,” the vampire smiled at him softly and Xir’ag answered with a small grin.

Xir’ag kept eating until his plate was empty and then set it down on the bench next to them. “So, what did Mercury want?”

“He gave us some lunch,” Sajore answered, nibbling at the drow’s ear tip lightly.

Xir’ag pushed him away with a laugh, “Then why are you eating my ear?”

“I need my dessert.”

Xir’ag kept giggling as the vampire pushed his hands inside his long jacket and pulled him closer.

They were soon interrupted by Andrei, who was looking slightly embarrassed. “The men are going into the sauna and they are asking if you would like to join them.”
Both of the men stared at him. Andrei coughed, “And they are not used to such clear shows of affection, Mister…s.”

That made Sajore laugh and he pulled his hands out of Xir’ag’s jacket. “Sorry, I got carried away.”

Andrei nodded and then looked at them both, waiting. Sajore lifted his eyebrows. “Was there something else?”

“The sauna, mister Sajore?”

Sajore glanced at Xir’ag. “I don’t care for hot, steaming rooms, but Xir’ag seems to be a bit chilly. He stood up and lifted Xir’ag with him, nudging him towards Andrei. “Take care of him.”

Before Xir’ag realized what was happening, Andrei was guiding him out of the barn and towards the edge of the village to the big village sauna.

Xir'ag stopped in the middle of the road, feeling how his cheeks turned hot. “I can’t go to the sauna with human men.” Xir’ag shook his head and looked embarrassed.

Andrei laughed warmly. “Don’t be nervous. It’s a custom that we do every solstice. People need the warmth and it wakes everyone up for the dance. It’s the women’s turn after the men. Don’t worry.” The boy patted his back and led them on.

Xir’ag was very nervous. “I don’t even have a towel,” he mumbled, trying to stop again only to be dragged forward by Andrei

“Don’t worry. They have everything there that we might need.”

Xir’ag sighed with relief when he saw a huge winged man walk towards them from the barn. Yvain. He looked up at the red head and smiled nervously. “You’re coming too?”

Yvain nodded and smiled lightly back “I like the warmth of a sauna.” His wings fluttered open and he walked past them.

Xir’ag ran after him.

Soon they arrived at a big wooden building. Smoke was rising from the chimney and several human men were walking in the door. They were all chatting loudly. Warm air surged out from the door as Yvain pulled it open and angled his wings down to step in. Xir’ag didn’t dare to go close, the place made him nervous. He knew people went to saunas naked and being naked in front of all these strange men was too much for him. He had been in a sauna with Sajore several times during their stay at the little farm, but it was completely different then. They didn’t really heat the sauna up and always ended up making love instead of really using the sauna. He didn’t even know if he liked real saunas and the thought of all the strangers in there…

But Andrei didn’t let him stay put; he dragged him in the door. A few other men stepped in behind them and finally the door was closed. They were in a cluttered little space that was full of big humans. He could see Yvain’s back as he pulled off his woollen coat, but averted his eyes as he started to strip off his pants.
Xir’ag felt tiny, and he really was. Even Andrei, who was still a boy, was taller than him. The little children went to the sauna with their mothers, so he was the smallest of the men there. He shrunk into a corner as the loud men started to remove their clothes.

He turned to face the corner, feeling very embarrassed, he was not used to this kind of thing. Somehow this reminded him of the graduation ceremony that had turned into such an unpleasant orgy at the academy of Menzoberranzan. He felt panic rise and tried to sneak to the door and run away, but was stopped halfway there. Andrei took his arm and laughed at him calmly. “Don’t look so nervous, Mister Xir’ag. There is nothing to worry about. The sauna is too warm to go into while dressed, so you better remove your clothes.”

Xir’ag stared at him, not knowing what he should answer. He didn’t make a move to remove any of his clothes. Andrei’s eyes shifted to the other men and he leaned closer to Xir’ag “Don’t worry about them, they are loud and big, but they would never do anything to harm you. Just sneak into the sauna and find a good place to sit, okay?”

Slowly Xir’ag nodded.

As Andrei turned away to toss off his shirt, Xir’ag removed his long coat and pulled off his shoes, finally removing his pants and rest of the clothes. He was standing naked in the middle of the big, hairy human men, without daring to move. He would have to shove the men away if he wanted to go to the sauna. It was chilly here in the dressing room and he could see the fog that his breath created in the air. He tangled his arms around himself and shivered.

Soon Andrei was close to him again, offering him a small, cotton towel. Xir’ag dared to glance around. The humans had very hairy bodies. His eyes were at the level of their chest and as he tried to look away, he was met with a dozen members dangling all around. All the men were uncut, he noticed before looking up at the roof. He felt his cheeks flushing. Andrei laughed at his horrified expression and then finally escorted him toward the sauna door.

The hot, steaming sauna was already half full and behind them stepped another dozen men into the room, pushing them in and closing the exit behind them.

The sauna room was big and had three long benches on top of each other for sitting on every side. The stove was in the middle of the room. It was so hot that Xir’ag wanted to kneel down, but obediently he followed Andrei to sit on one of the benches. To his horror Andrei put away his towel and offered his hand to take Xir’ag’s as well. He shook his head but the boy pulled the towel off him and hung it onto a hook on a wall next to the door.

He glanced around nervously and saw Yvain sitting on the other side of the sauna. The man nodded at him as he walked behind Andrei and sat on the second bench.

For a while he sat there, bent down, with his head on his knees and tried to get used to the hot air. It was hard to breathe. The men around him were talking and laughing loudly. As he lifted his head, he noticed several of them staring at him and felt extremely naked. Andrei was talking to an older man who was sitting behind them and Xir’ag felt several curious eyes drift over his small, slender body. The scent of human sweat was filling the air.

“Is this your first time in a sauna?” one of the men asked, offering him a bottle of mead. Xir’ag took it and drank deeply, shaking his head. “No, but I’ve never been in a public sauna, so this is all very new and strange to me.” The cold mead tasted delicious.

“You are still a young lad, you’ll experience many new things out here,” another man added, taking the mead from him.

Xir’ag smiled at him nervously, nodding.

The first man started to laugh. “Don’t you know anything about the elven folks Iisac? This lad must be older than any of us.” He looked at Xir’ag with a questioning glance, clearly studying his youthful, black, hairless body.

“I am only seventy years old, which for a drow, is a teenager. I will still grow and my body will be manlier in time,” he looked down as he talked, but lifted his head again as the sauna fell quiet. Almost all of the men were staring at him now. He glanced at Yvain, who was leaning his wings against the wall, his eyes closed. Xir’ag wanted to scream and run away. He felt so nervous, but he couldn’t move, everyone would stare at his nakedness if he were to get up. At least now he could hide parts of it while sitting down.

An old, wrinkled man on the other side of the sauna looked at him with awe. “You are only a few years younger than me,” he said with a crackling voice.

Xir’ag smiled at him sheepishly and nodded.

Slowly the men started to talk again, but several of them offered Xir’ag mead and asked him questions. Slowly he blended in and relaxed until he felt so hot that he was going to faint. He wiped sweat from his brow and sighed heavily.

Andrei stood up next to him and hopped down from the upper bench. “Hot enough? Do you want to go out?”

Xir’ag smiled and nodded firmly as a reply, standing up and fluidly jumping to the floor. Quickly he ran after Andrei, taking his towel from the hook next to the door. To his horror the boy led them all the way outside, where some of the men were sitting on long benches, sipping mead and talking. Their bodies steamed in the cold air. One of the boys who was around Andrei’s age ran past them with a loud yell and stumbled out into the snow, starting to roll around in it. Xir’ag stared at him, his mouth hanging open.

Andrei laughed at him again as he too knelt and took some snow into his hands, rubbing it on the skin of his arms and thighs. Xir’ag copied him, but squealed as the cold snow touched his heated skin. The tiny crystals of the snowflakes felt hard and scraped against the skin. He ran back inside, folding his small towel around himself tightly.

One of the men who had talked to him walked in after him and pointed to the sauna. “There is heated water there if you want to wash off the sweat.”

Xir’ag turned to face him suspiciously “Really?” he asked, standing in front of the big man, trying to wrap his tiny towel tighter around himself. The man grabbed his shoulder in a fatherly manner and walked him into the sauna.

There really was a big wooden tub full of water in the corner. Xir’ag walked towards it and stared into the deep tub. He found a big ladle floating on the surface and scooped it full of water, pouring it all on himself.

The water was warm and felt good after the extreme heat and cold. He poured a few scoops more until he felt clean and warm again and turned to walk out. A few of the men were staring at him again. He knew they found his black skin and white hair strange, but those gazes were making him very uneasy, so he left the sauna as fast as he could. He wanted to get out of there and find Sajore.

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

Xir’ag ran all the way back to the barn as soon as he had gotten his clothes on. A few of the men who were walking in or out from the sauna tried to ask him to get back in, but he refused with a few courteous words and kept pulling his clothes on.

Soon Andrei hurried from outside, with his cheeks flushed and his hair full of snow, he was laughing with his friend, but turned serious when he noticed Xir’ag. “Is everything okay Mister Xir’ag? Mister Sajore trusted you to my care, I’m sorry I left you alone.”

“It’s okay. I am going back to the barn.”

Andrei turned around, looking nervous until Xir’ag laughed to calm him down, “Everything really is okay. Go back to the sauna before you catch a cold.”

Andrei smiled and ran to the sauna after his friend.

Xir'ag found Sajore and Shaya in the barn, clapping their hands and singing their hearts out. A group of kids and women were singing folksongs and it seemed that Sajore knew every one of them. Shaya was keeping up too and seemed to have made friends with some of the village girls, as they were now giggling together and dancing around, clapping and whispering into each other's ears. Sajore was a little further away, laughing at the little jokes in the song and ruffling the little children’s hair as he sang.

Xir’ag walked to him and immediately the vampire grabbed him to a happy dance around the barn. “Hello my darling. How was sauna?”

“It was very hot and full of sweaty, hairy men.”

Sajore laughed heartily, swirling him around. “That sounds like fun.”

Xir’ag had to smile as he arched his eyebrow. “I didn’t know you liked sweaty, hairy men.”

“I like you sweaty, with or without hair,” the vampire purred into his ear and Xir’ag laughed, swirling the vampire around in return.

Soon they reached the little singing group again and stopped. Sajore started his singing again and Xir’ag listened to them, clapping to the rhythm of the song.

He couldn’t help but admire the vampire’s voice, even when the humans seemed to be deaf to it. Of course they were throwing admiring glances at the vampire, but Xir’ag was getting used to it, humans found Sajore’s appearance appealing. He hoped they would get used to him already too, he felt alien and strange in the middle of the pale humans.

As soon as his thoughts had turned dark, he felt a strong hand fold around his waist and Sajore pulled him closer, laughing softly into his ear. Then he whispered, “How about we give them a show?”

Xir’ag laughed. “Your shows are normally not suited for kids.”

Sajore swatted him on the backside playfully, laughing. “I was hoping you could dance and I would sing.”

“That sounds good.” Xir’ag smiled and Sajore waved his hand in the air to quiet the singing.

Everyone turned to look at them.

“We would like to show you some drow art if you would be kind enough to help with the music.”
The humans clapped their hands and gathered all around them, smiling widely, some of them were dancing to the rhythm of the clapping, but the dancing was completely different than what Xir’ag was used to.

The dancing he did in the Underdark was like physical training, he had to have perfect control of his body to perform the dance, where the humans dance was simply jumping from foot to foot in the rhythm of the music.

Shaya was almost squealing, she was so excited. She had never really seen Xir’ag performing, but she could tell from her brother’s words that it was something unforgettable. The girls gathered around the vampire woman and together they started to cheer Xir’ag on.

The drow, looking slightly embarrassed by all the attention, but really starting to enjoy it, threw away his thick jacket and kicked off his boots. He took his scarf off from his neck; he could use that in the dance. He sighed deeply, starting to concentrate and forgetting everything that was going around him.

Sajore was asking around if anyone had any instruments. One of the girls ran off and soon returned with a violin. She said her father played it, but she could play it a bit too. That was enough for them. Sajore yelled out a name of a song that was fast, but not too merry and the humans started to clap again.

Xir’ag walked to the middle of the barn and as the violin started to play, let his body move slightly. He was still warm from the sauna and didn’t have to fear for sprains.

Sajore started to sing and Xir’ag closed his eyes, smiling lightly as he listened to his lover’s low, soft voice. His body moved on its own. He swirled around in the air, light as a feather, turning his head so his hair would flow fluidly after him. His arms rose as he landed again and then he was already bending his back so he could reach the floor. He lifted his legs up and, standing on his hands, jumped back to the ground. The singing was interrupted with surprised, admiring sounds.

He smiled and slowly opened his eyes, letting his feet carry him across the floor. He jumped up and turned around, landing softly on one foot, balancing his body perfectly and moving to lean on his hand. His hair touched the floor and he lowered himself almost to the ground, until, like a snake he moved up again, his body arching almost impossibly.

Sajore’s voice had almost disappeared and he turned to look at him, to find the man gaping at him with an open mouth, he looked like he was about to drool. Xir’ag lost his steps, and giggling, trotted to a stop in front of the people.

“Your turn,” he yelled at them, opening his arms. The humans ran to the floor and started dancing, like they always did, jumping around and singing happily, clapping hands and stomping feet. Xir’ag stepped away to give them space and walked to Sajore, slowly, his hips slightly swaying.

All the women were still dancing when the men started to return from the sauna. Sajore had finally woken from his daze and was now swirling around with Xir’ag, who had had time to put his jacket and boots back on. They were both singing with the women and as the men stepped in, they stopped to stare at the happy group.

Slowly the men found their wives or daughters and began to dance with them. The man who the violin belonged to took it from his daughter and started playing, he was very good at it and soon all the people in the village were packed inside the barn, dancing and singing their hearts out.

Sajore danced Xir’ag a little bit closer to the main door and whispered into his ear, “What do you say we sneak out and have our own party?” He was grinning widely, showing off his long fangs.

Xir’ag looked up at him and smiled wickedly, nodding slowly. They snuck out quietly, without anyone noticing them leaving. Just as they were out and ready to run to the shadows, Andrei ran after them, his cheeks flushed dark red and his breathing ragged, he had obviously been drinking plenty of mead and dancing his heart out.

He was smiling widely. “Come back later, we still need to circle the town.”

“Circle the town?”

“Yes, to bless the town and cast away the evil, that’s tradition.”

“Do we have time for a screw?” Sajore asked, completely serious.

Xir’ag flushed deep red and punched him on the arm.

Andrei stared at the vampire for a little while, blinking, and then laughed out loud and nodded. “Yes, mister Sajore. There is time for that.”

Sajore nodded back and dragged the huffing drow off.

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

They were pulling each other across a snow covered field. Sajore was walking backwards until he turned them around and Xir’ag jumped into his lap. He moaned against Sajore’s lips and crushed his mouth against his. Their tongues fought and Xir’ag’s hot breath warmed their cold faces. It was freezing cold and completely dark outside. Both of them used their infrared vision and could see each other by the warmness of their bodies. Sajore was quickly warming up with the hot drow on his lap, grounding himself against him and whispering his name with a lustful voice.

“You have to help me Sajore, its freaking cold here,” Xir’ag whispered as he attacked to bite softly on Sajore’s neck. He pushed the black hair away and bit down on his skin. Sajore growled deeply and suddenly dropped to the ground on his knees. He pushed down Xir’ag’s pants and licked his long ear tip, making the drow moan and thrust against him. When the cold air caught the drow’s private parts, he gasped against the pale skin in front of him.

“Hurry up or I’ll freeze,” he whispered, chuckling lightly. His hot breath tickled Sajore’s neck and made the vampire grin.

“Stand up,” he told him and then he was already lifting Xir’ag up. The drow stood with his pants still down on his thighs while Sajore fumbled his own pants open. He didn’t seem to be affected by the cold the slightest. The vampire took a firm hold of Xir’ag’s back and swung him around, nuzzling his naked backside.

Xir’ag shivered from the cold and from lust as a wet, warm tongue invaded his entrance and started to thrust in and out of him with rapid speed. He bend almost double to keep as much of himself warm as he could and Sajore hugged him closer, licking and slurping at his entrance until Xir’ag was panting heavily. That was when the vampire suddenly swung him back to his lap, this time sideways, so his legs were up, guarding his balls and cock from freezing completely.

The vampire lowered him down so he was positioned on top of his hard erection. Xir’ag gasped as he felt him press against his entrance. He couldn’t help but to strain his muscles at the cold, but the vampire wasn’t stopping. He buried his face against Sajore’s warm neck and hugged him tightly as he was slowly lowered to be penetrated. Xir’ag was breathing raggedly and hung his head against Sajore’s chest as he was finally completely full of the vampire’s cock. Sajore was holding his legs up so he couldn’t move an inch but was also warm against the vampire. His bared ass, on the other hand, was freezing.

He shivered again, and Sajore moved him slowly up. “Are you okay?” the vampire whispered against his pure white hair. Xir’ag nodded and panted harder as the vampire let him fall back down. He was completely full! Sajore started to lift his hips, thrusting in and out. Xir’ag’s fingers grasped a firm hold on Sajore’s shoulders and suddenly he felt very hot as his blood started to boil with lust. Sajore must have felt it because he let out a low snicker, starting to move faster, only to get a reply from Xir’ag as the drow moved to his rhythm on his lap.

Suddenly they heard a creak of a boot on snow from the bushes and trees near the big field and froze. Sajore folded his jacket around Xir’ag as well as he could, hiding them both inside it.

“Who’s there?” they heard a yell. A guard. Sajore cursed silently and Xir’ag whined. For a moment all of them were quiet. Then a wicked grin spread on the vampire’s lips and he licked at Xir’ag’s neck. “Answer him before he comes here,” he whispered to the drow’s pointed ear. Xir’ag, with a shaky voice, took a firm hold of the front of his tunic and whimpered.

But it was too late. They heard footsteps nearing. Xir’ag opened his mouth with panic “Wait, ahh, um, it’s just- ohhh!” Sajore moved inside him, making his thoughts slip into a blur. The drow squeezed Sajore’s arm and concentrated as Sajore thrusted into him as hard as he could. “We’re - uhhhh- busy here, haa haa!” he whined as he saw the shape of the big guard man approaching them.

Then he heard a chuckle. “Oh, I see.” The man started to walk backwards back to the trees, lowering his spear. Xir’ag heard Sajore chuckle softly against his neck as he still kept fucking the drow as hard as ever.

“Nggg, Yeahaah!” Xir’ag yelled out, his other hand falling to the ground to stable him before he would fall completely, though he knew Sajore wouldn’t let him drop. The guard was gone in a small moment. And Xir’ag was furious about Sajore’s actions, but he really couldn’t concentrate enough to yell at the vampire while his ass was being pounded like this. So he grabbed a handful of the vampire’s hair into a fist and pulled hard. Sajore only grunted with pleasure and he could practically hear his grin.

Neither of them tried to make it last after that or Xir’ag would really freeze or someone would interrupt them again. They moved frantically against each other, stroking and holding each other as Xir’ag’s breath turned quicker and heavier by the minute until he started to whimper against Sajore’s hot neck. The vampire’s heated hand was around his cock, stroking him as he kept pounding into him over and over again.

“Ah, Sajore!” the drow whispered heatedly, pulling him for a clumsy kiss and then, suddenly he came with a scream against the hungry mouth of his lover. Sajore felt his inner muscles clamp all around his cock and thrusted in harder until he released with a howl.

He almost dropped Xir’ag as his arms and legs shook and his mind blurred. The drow hung on his arms, panting and shivering from the cold. With haste Sajore lifted him up enough to pull out of him and pulled Xir’ag’s pants back on. The drow made a face at the mess in his pants, but he wasn’t ready to wash up in the freezing snow, he would more willingly tolerate the mess until they would get back to their cabin. He just hoped his pants were thick enough to hide everything, as he didn’t want to show his messy ass to everyone.

Sajore was lifting them up with shaky legs, covering himself up. He stared back at Xir’ag, who tried to cover his backside with his short coat, to no avail. The vampire smiled softly and kissed Xir’ag’s white hair, pulling off his long black coat and offered it for Xir’ag. He still had a tunic under the coat and it was enough for a vampire. He smiled as Xir’ag took the jacket with surprise. Then the drow shivered and with haste they dressed him. Sajore folded his arm around Xir’ag when he was dressed again and together they started to trot back into the village, where they could hear the excited human voices.

“You bastard,” Xir’ag mumbled quietly just before the reached the edge of the field. Sajore’s only answer was a jaunty grin.

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

They were just walking out from the field and into the main street from behind one the houses as they stumbled into a small group of young humans who were hurrying to the field where they were coming from. Andrei was with them and with red cheeks he hurried to greet them. He was obviously very drunk and couldn’t stop giggling as he leaned his whole weight against Xir’ag. Then he whispered, “How was the screw?” and winked.

Xir’ag laughed nervously and turned the boy around before Sajore got the chance to rip him away from the drow.

Andrei fell against a friend of his and the boy took a firm hold of him, looking very apologetically at the two men. They ran away before Andrei could say anything else.

But they were not alone in the streets. There were people everywhere. Everyone had come out from the barn and now they were running around with their lanterns, all heading to the field where the two men were returning from. Sajore glanced at Xir’ag who looked slightly horrified. A little moment longer and the whole village would have been there to testify their little rut. Sajore almost burst out laughing of the thought while Xir’ag’s eyes jumped from human to human. He felt the vampire’s hot cum smear his pants from inside and blushed.

Suddenly he saw a glimpse of Shaya and Yvain, looming over everyone else and almost ran to them, dragging Sajore with him. Thank goodness they had been quick! The fire spirit was carrying the small vampire girl on his wide shoulders and she was laughing aloud. Mercury was talking with Yvain as they walked towards the men, soon reaching them. They greeted each other and with curiosity Sajore asked where everyone was heading to.

Mercury smiled at him, pointing to the field. “On that field is our sacred gathering spot. We are going to start the circle around the town from that blessed place and return to it after the whole town is circled.”

“And why are you circling the town?” Sajore asked, scratching at his messy hair. Had Xir’ag at some point rubbed his hair? Oh yeah, the pulling…. His hair was in such a tangle that the vampire couldn’t get it out. He glanced at Xir’ag and saw the drow staring at the ground with flushed cheeks.

“That way we will set a guarding spell around the town, no evil spirit can get inside it,” Mercury answered, stopping in the middle of the field, right next to a spot where the snow was broken and rumbled. Sajore realized that that was what Xir’ag was staring at. He couldn’t help himself as he leaned closer to the drow and whispered huskily into his ear, “This is a blessed, sacred spot, isn’t that great, we made a donation for a sacred cause!” Xir’ag’s face turned quickly, his eyes flaming red, he pushed the vampire so suddenly that Sajore almost fell down. He started to laugh and Xir’ag covered his mouth, giggling frantically.

Mercury seemed surprised but didn’t ask anything, slowly he turned to face the villagers who were all arriving to the field. Yvain was standing a little further away from them with Shaya still on his wide shoulders.

Xir’ag tried to fight a yawn, but it escaped trough his hand and the vampire next to him hugged him tightly. “Do you want to ride me too?” he asked, pointing at Yvain and Shaya and Xir’ag smirked at him, “Thanks for the offer, but let’s wait until we get home.”

Sajore laughed, “You better keep that promise.” He winked and without warning Xir’ag stepped back and jumped onto his back. Sajore caught his thighs and held him tightly against his back.

“Welcome back,” Shaya mumbled suddenly from far above them and Yvain turned to face them too, looking slightly surprised to be almost face-to-face with Xir’ag.
“Where were you for so long?” he asked, then looked like he regretted ever opening his mouth. Both of the men just stared at him with lifted eyebrows and Sajore pointed at the snow where it had been tramped. Yvain turned hastily away, leading Shaya away from them as the girl started giggling madly. She had obviously been drinking wine too.

Soon all the people were out and the head of the village, an old woman with a fragile voice welcomed them to the long dark night. The kids ran around and tried to scare everyone and the women were chanting. Everyone held their lanterns up and bottles of wine and mead circled among the big group.

Soon they were circling the town, walking from house to house at the far edge of the small town. Sajore and Xir’ag joined the dance as the elders threw strange little luck charms to the corners of every house, saying a prayer here and there and endlessly chanting.

Soon they had walked around the whole village and returned to the field where the elders ended the song with raised bottles and well wishes for all. The humans scattered around into smaller groups and headed inside the houses and back into the barn.

Xir’ag was almost asleep at this point and Yvain kept yawning nonstop. Shaya had already fallen asleep on his back. Slowly they started to walk the short way back into their small farm; though at the moment the journey seemed to be much longer than normal.

As Xir’ag closed the door of their cabin and finally trotted to the bed, falling next to the happily smiling vampire, he was happy and excited, but also too tired to even talk. They fell asleep holding each other.

Though as soon as the drow fell asleep, Sajore started to slowly and carefully strip him off his thick winter clothes with a wicked grin on his face. He was going to make sure Xir’ag would keep his promise, in the morning, after a good nights rest.

In the morning; when the sun was not going to rise.