The Happy Few

A/N: I swear I have a personality, I've just been busy with trying to sell my house and keep it clean and yadd yadda yadda. Anyway, I thank all the reviewers very much. I love comments and the things people say are appreciated and helpful; sometimes they help me figure out what to do in future chapters. And yes, there is finally sex. This story/the relationship needed the build up to the sex.

Chapter 5


Emery woke to a leg draped over his thigh and an arm around his neck. His battle instincts kicked in immediately and he tensed, assessing the situation and waiting for a possible attack. Then he remembered who he was sharing his bed with. The boy groaned, shifted onto his back, and untangled the thief’s limbs from his body. Kir mumbled something at the loss of warmth and pulled his pillow to his chest.

From the brightness and slant of the sunlight through the window, Emery thought it was only an hour past sunrise. They would have to leave soon. He wondered if Ari was awake; the elf seemed more inclined to take the task seriously than Kir, but if he had brought a girl to his room last night, he might not be willing to rise early and run off to start on their errand.

The boy frowned a bit. This task was nothing like a military mission. In the military, if any of his comrades had run off to drink, get laid, or slept in till noon when they were supposed to be completing a task, there would be hell to pay from the commanders. But, he supposed, they had no chaperones with them so there was no one to keep them in line. It would all come down to self-control.

Kir snorted and laughed in his sleep, then rolled over. Self-control. Emery pressed his palms into his eyes. They were never going to successfully complete this mission.

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It was ten o’clock when Ari appeared. Emery had slipped from the room and gone down to the tavern to eat a little breakfast. The elf appeared with who he assumed was the girl that had displaced Kir the previous night. The two elves spoke softly to one another and, after running a hand down the man’s cheek, the girl left the tavern. When Ari spotted the young soldier, he walked over and took a seat.

“Are you ready to begin travel?”

“I’ve been ready.” Emery said, pushing a plate of shredded potatoes toward the elf.

The elf grabbed a fork and started eating. “Then we’ll leave immediately. Or as soon as Kir gets up. Did he go to your room last night?”

“He did. I found him groping me this morning.”

Ari coughed a bit. “Groping you?”

“His arms and legs were draped all over me.” Emery clarified.

“Yes, he does seem to have that habit. Well, after you’re finished, just go push him out of bed and bring him down here. Bring all your stuff too; we’ll be camping in the gorge.”

The boy nodded. He was ready to get to work.

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A cup of cold water dribbled over his face brought Kir abruptly to his senses. He sputtered and shot up in bed.

“I’m drowning!”

“You aren’t drowning. Now get up, get your stuff, and come downstairs to eat or else you’ll be traveling all day on an empty stomach.”

The thief glared at Emery. “You know, Emi, you’re really a snot.”

“If that’s the gratitude I get for sharing my room and bed and letting you roll all over me in your sleep, then I’ll know better than to share with you again.”

“You poured water on me!” Kir yelled.

Emery turned his back on him and went to get his bag. “You can’t sleep in until noon. We’re on an important task.” He glanced over his shoulder. “Or did you forget that we’re trying to save the elves of Roch Island and prevent devastating civil war from breaking out in our country?”

The young man grumbled and got out of bed. He ran his hands down his face and shucked water from his fingers. “I remember…”

When they had gathered their things and left the room, Kir grabbed hold of the boy’s wrist. Emery looked at him curiously.

“Is Ari down there?”

“Yes.” When he saw the thief’s face tighten and pale, he added, “The girl is gone. He’s just finishing up breakfast.”

“Oh.” He tried to smile, but he couldn’t force his lips to make the expression.

Ari spotted them coming down the stairs. He noted that the small thief was still yawning, but that did not surprise him. When they sat down, Kir immediately reached for the food and started shoveling it into his mouth. Emery looked away in disgust at the lack of table manners.

“You know,” Ari said, leaning towards the human,” you might be able to taste the food more if you chew.”

Kir said nothing, only shot the elf a scathing glare. Ari’s eyes widen a bit at the look, but he made no comment. As the human ate, Ari supplied them with details of what to expect in the gorge and what he hoped they would accomplish on their first day of traveling.

“I don’t know exactly where the site is, but I hope a full day of travel will take us there or close to its location.” He thought a moment then looked at Emery. “Did your teacher tell you the exact location of this sacred object?”

“Hold on.” Emery reached for the bag at his feet and rummaged in it for some papers. He flipped through them, pausing at a map and examining it. “Luca believes that it will take us a full day and a half of travel to get to the site. He hypothesizes that there will be markers on the way to help point us in the direction, but we’ll also need to watch out for traps.”

The elf nodded. “Then we’ll need to leave soon. Are you done?” He looked at Kir.

“Yeah, yeah. I’m done.”

They stacked the food plates on the corner of the table and left some coins for the barmaid to take when she collected the platters.

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The gorge narrowed from a wide path that allowed the three of them to walk abreast of one another with feet of distance between them to a stream-sized trail that forced them to walk in a line, one behind the other. An hour before night fell, they found a crevice cut into the stone wall which would fit all of them and make a suitable place to sleep.

Ari managed to build a small fire with some dried leaves that had blown down the gorge from the desert sandstorms and a piece of flint stone he had. Before they had left the town, Emery had purchased a bit of dried meat that would serve as their meals for the three days they would be in the gorge. They roasted it on skewers thrust into the flames, enjoying the smell of the cooking meat.

Kir had edged closer to the boy soldier, shying away from the elf. Though Ari had said nothing of his affair with the female elf, Kir felt as if it were hanging in the air between them like a foul stench. But when he looked at the others, he discovered he was the only one to think such a thing. They both seemed at peace.

“So, what is this meat?” He asked Emery.

“Desert hare.”

Kir sighed; he wished the boy was more talkative. Neither of his companions seemed inclined to talk without a purpose.

When they got ready for bed that evening, there was no space for them to put up tents in the crevice. They laid their bedding out on the slab of stone at the bottom of the cave that they were camping in. Ari took a position close to the opening, wanting to watch guard for a few hours to make sure no desert animal came skulking about. Emery chose a spot at the back of the crevice, away from the draft, and curled into a small ball. For a moment, Kir was unsure what to do. He looked between the two of them, then went and laid down next to Emery.

A weak howl of pain startled Ari from his peaceful watch. He turned to look behind him and saw Kir clutching at his belly. He raised an eyebrow.

“He elbowed me!” Kir cried.

From his spot in the blankets, Emery mumbled. “I’m trained to attack, even in my sleep. You touched me.”

The thief continued to gripe, but when the boy did not respond, he eventually settled and went to sleep as well. Ari continued his watch for several hours, but the most danger he saw came from a horned toad skipping on the rocks outside the crevice. When he was certain that they were safe, the man reclined against the wall and shut his eyes to sleep.

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The echoes of a strangled scream bouncing off the rock walls woke both Ari and Kir from their slumber. Ari immediately reached for his spear then took stock of the crevice. All their packs were there. Emery was gone.

“Where is the boy?” He asked Kir, pointing to where Emery’s blankets sat, folded neatly in a pile.

The young man glanced around. “I dunno. Didn’t he tell you?”

Ari uttered an Elven curse and grabbed his bag. “Gather your things quickly, we have to find him.”

Kir had opened his mouth, ready to protest, but he was cut off.

“Why are you packing up already? Are you both actually ready to move off this early?”

Ari whipped his head towards the front of the crevice.

“There he is.” Kir said, as unconcerned as he had been when first woken up. He stretched then looked at the strange creature Emery had dangling in one of his hands. “What’s that?”

The boy lifted the animal. “Breakfast. I caught it down a ways in the gorge. There’s a small stream there. It makes it so that a number of animals can live here, despite the harsh conditions. I found this fellow taking a drink and he was a little too slow in escaping. He let out an awful screech when I caught him.”

“That is all very fine and well,” Ari said, walking over and putting his hands on his hips, “but you should not go off on your own, especially in strange lands where we don’t know whether to expect friend or foe.”

Emery nodded. “Yes. But for now, let’s enjoy breakfast then get on our way.”

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They happened upon the sacred site quite by accident. Over the course of several hours, they had covered a great distance, but also met with many obstacles and traps. After watching out for pitfalls all day, their eyes became wary and tired.

Much to his embarrassment, it was Emery who found the hidden path that led to the first artifact. They had been climbing over some large bluffs that had blocked the path forward, commenting on the various etchings and markings on the stones. Kir was lagging behind, breath coming in short puffs, and Ari had paused to wait for the human.

Emery had moved on ahead, looking for any blatant sign of ancient architecture or a hint to the direction where the artifact lay. He had just spotted an odd hieroglyph and jumped off the rock he was on to go to it, when his footing slipped. The tip of his boot wedged between two rocks and he pitched forward. As he lost his balance, he tried to break his fall by grasping at a massive boulder. To his surprise, the boulder weighed very little and he dislodged it.

Further down the narrow trail, Kir had just managed to struggle up the steep incline they had been traversing and was resting on the ground when he heard a shout. The thief furrowed his brows and looked at Ari.

“What was that?”

The elf did not answer. He left Kir where he sat and sprinted towards the cry, leaping over rocks as if they were of little consequence. Kir sucked in a deep breath and struggled to his feet. He tottered along in Ari’s wake, complaining to himself of the heat and the rocks that he continually tripped over.

When he reached the others, Ari was crouched at the soldier’s side, feeling the boy’s ankle.

“It isn’t broken.” The elf said, pulling his hands away. “Just twisted. It will swell, but not badly, I think.”

Emery pulled his knee up to his chest and tested the ankle for himself. “I’ll manage. More importantly, I think I found the way to our first artifact.” He pointed to where he had moved the boulder.

Where the boulder had been sitting, a large square hole had appeared which led underground. Kir went over to investigate. “It’s pretty big; I think we can all fit.” He grinned at Ari. “Even you should be able to fit. I can’t see where it leads though. Want me to go ahead and get the thing?”

“You don’t even know what the artifact looks like.” Emery said, getting to his feet and wobbling over. He peered down into the darkness. “We should all go. Who knows what trouble will be down there? You would as soon find the artifact as fall into a trap and die.”

Kir growled. “Says the person who tripped on a rock!”

“I still found the way to the artifact.”

While the two humans bickered, Ari fished in his bag for something to use as a light. He frowned when he realized he had no oil to make a torch and, in their haste to begin their journey quickly, he had not thought to pack a travel-sized lantern. He began checking in the others’ bags. In the boy’s pack, he found a bottle of wound salve that he thought would light easily. With the salve in hand, he tore a piece from his cloak and slathered it in the ointment. A brittle branch that had floated down the little stream proved an effective handle for the torch.

By the time the argument between the thief and the boy was over, Ari had the small torch lit. He pushed the two out of the way, uninterested in their squabble, and crawled down into the darkened cavern Emery had discovered. Once he had gotten down the shaft that led from the surface, the lair seemed to open up into a large hallway with ample space. He called for the two humans to follow after and gave a little snort of amusement when Kir landed on his rear when he shimmied down the entrance tunnel. He pulled the human up, then assisted Emery, making sure the boy didn’t land on his injured ankle.

“Since there’s only one way, I think it’s quite clear where to go.” He gestured down the hall with the torch.

Kir latched onto Emery’s arm and walked with him, studiously trying to ignore Ari, but still casting glances at the elf every few moments. He looked at the way the dim torch light bounced off of the elf’s pale skin and the long tail of wheat colored hair bouncing against his back. Ari was the exact opposite of what his former partner had been like, but there was a good deal of appeal in that.

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The uneven, coarse stone of the tunnel gave way to an ancient hall of polished stone and intricate decorations. A dusting of gold paint was still on the walls, flaking from age. A good deal of craftsmanship had gone into the making of the hallway and they conjectured amongst themselves about the likelihood that the place was once an active religious site. They speculated about the murals painted on the walls as well, noting the colors and stories told in each different scene.

“I would think, if the frescos on the walls are any indication, that our artifact is associated with fire.” Ari said.

And it was. The hallway, after going on for about a league, opened into a grand circular mausoleum. A row of limestone pillars supported the ceiling, which Ari realized had similar paintings as the hallway. Before they had entered, they had noted a strange, ethereal glow coming from the room. There was a raised platform in the center of the room and in its center was the source of the light. What Ari first thought was a ball of fire, he realized after a moment of intense scrutiny, was a dagger surrounded by flames. They stepped closer to examine it.

“What’s making the flames?” Kir asked, sticking a hand into the fire. He pulled it back seconds later. “Hot. It’s real fire.”

The blade itself was nothing grand; it looked to Ari’s eye to like a basilard dagger with a unique hilt. The point of the dagger was buried in the pedestal so that the hilt was displayed, as if it were on show. The design on the dagger’s end was that of a thorny tree with curling branches. One branch arced down the side of the hilt and made an artful handle, which would make it difficult to knock out of one’s hand.

“Did any of Lucas’ research indicate what our artifact might look like?” Ari asked.

Emery shook his head. “No. He could not say what they were. He thought they might be orbs or weapons or any object of an unsuspecting nature.”

The elf snorted. “I don’t suppose he told you if the chamber the artifact is held in would be riddled with traps, did he?”

“He couldn’t say, but in any case, I’d wager there’s some trap that we should be wary of.”

“There always is.”

They made a quick circuit of the room, looking for any cracks or crevices where a trap mechanism could spring from. The walls seemed solid. They turned their attention back to the pedestal. The flames that guarded the dagger had no source, as if they had wished themselves into existence. Ari tried sprinkling some of his canteen water on the flames, but they only burned brighter. They stared at the flames, puzzled, contemplating how to move past them and get the artifact.

“Do you suppose we just grab it?” Kir asked.

“We could try.” Ari said. “Why don’t you grab it?”

The thief jumped a little. “Me? Why do I have to grab it?”

“Aren’t you supposedly stealthy and quick?” Emery asked, fixing him with a teasing look. “Isn’t that why you were told to come along?”

“Truth be told, I’m sure Sigael only sent him on the journey to get him out of the town.” Ari said.

“Hey! You guys are jerks! You want me to do it? Fine! I’ll get the stupid dagger!”

The young man pushed past Ari and stood in front of the pedestal. The flames flickered, daring him to try and take the treasure that they guarded. He searched for a low point in the fire and, finding none, gulped. He glanced back at his travel companions. Emery had folded his arms across his chest and was staring at him, waiting. Ari had his usual bored expression on. Their looks sent a surge of anger through Kir’s body and he turned back to the fire, resolved, and lifted his hand.

He stared at the flames for a moment. An irritated sigh from behind him served as the motivation he needed and, after taking a final deep breath, Kir thrust his hand into the fire, grabbed the dagger, and pulled it free. He had barely felt the heat of the flames.

When Kir opened his palm, he looked down at the dagger. The blade was so bright and clear, he could see his own reflection in it. Being immersed in flames hadn’t left a single blemish of ash on it. It was an extraordinary artifact indeed. He looked at Ari and extended his palm.

“Should we test it?” The thief asked as Ari stepped forward to take the dagger.

The elf paused, his arm stopping halfway as he reached for the artifact. “I don’t think that’s a wise idea. Best to secure the thing safely and let Sigael and the humans figure out how it works.”

Kir nodded, watching as Ari wrapped the dagger in one of his shirts and slipped it into his bag. They all seemed to let out a collective breath of relief.

“And now for the tedious part.” Ari said, slinging his pack onto his back once more. They looked at him curiously. “Trekking back with nothing to look forward to.”

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Kir was happy to see the tavern again. They returned to the town sometime after noon and immediately went to find a place to rest. After spending another night sleeping in a cramped hole in the side of the gorge, he was ready to enjoy the plush feel of a mattress and pillows under his body instead of rock. He had managed to squirm in next to Emery the night before, but the boy seemed to despise physical contact and had shied away. Against his wishes, he had resorted to curling up next to Ari. The elf’s bulk and warmth were comforting and he managed to forget that he was trying to avoid Ari. He had been trying to be aloof since the man had taken the she-elf to their room and kicked him out. Though his plan had failed during the night, Kir succeeded during the day at least. He directed his comments to Emery and hung closer to the boy’s side than Ari’s. He was certain Ari had taken notice of this, but if the elf had, he did not seem to care.

When they entered the tavern, Ari got two room keys and handed one to Emery then sent him off to bed. He turned to Kir and waved the key at him.

“Shall we?”

The thief frowned slightly. “Okay.”

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Ari did not make use of his free time to enjoy a drink at the tavern. Once they were settled in the room, he reclined on the bed and stared up at the ceiling thoughtfully. After awhile, he seemed to fall into a doze and Kir watched the way the man’s eyelids fluttered. He felt tired as well, but he was too stubborn to crawl onto the bed and take a nap. He knew he would wake the elf and he didn’t particularly welcome a confrontation. Instead, he took the blankets they had used on their travel in the gorge and fashioned a pillow with them.

He must have slept for several long hours, because when he woke the sun had gone down and the tavern was rowdy and loud with the night crowd. Ari was awake and pacing the room, shirtless and with only his pants on. He glanced at Kir lying on the floor, then went back to pacing.

“You sleep like a rock.”

The young man sat up and rubbed at his eyes. “So? You hogged the bed.”

“You were free to climb in.”

“I wasn’t certain.”

Ari paused in his walking. He fixed the human with an inquisitive stare, but the thief turned his head away. The man moved closer. “You’ve been acting odd for several days. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you were trying to avoid me. And you’re going a rather poor job at it.”

Kir said nothing. He tried to stay strong and keep his eyes fixed on the wall, but he failed. When he turned his dark eyes up at Ari, he found the elf gazing down at him as if he were a curious animal the man had just discovered.

“Out with it.” The elf demanded, squatting down beside Kir. “Tell me what’s bothering you.”

The human looked down at his lap. “I don’t like being told to leave my room.” He mumbled.

“Is that all?”

“I don’t like when you sleep with someone else in your bed. Other than me.” Kir glanced up at the elf out of the corner of his eye. Ari stared at him, surprised.

There was a long, strained silence between the two of them.

Ari leaned over and brushed a hand across the nape of Kir’s neck, causing the young man to shiver. “Is that what’s been bothering you?”

The thief nodded, unable to find words for once, attention focused on the hand that was creeping across the tender skin of his neck, moving lower to slip into his shirt and caress the skin of his collar.

“You should have just said so.” Ari whispered into his ear before slipping his arms under the human’s armpits and carrying him to the bed. He dropped him down unceremoniously. “I would have let you sleep with me.”

A splash of red covered the young man’s face as he bounced from the impact of landing on the bed. Foolish as he was, even he could not miss the blatant offer of sex. He looked up at Ari and found the elf staring down at him, contemplating, gauging. The elf truly was handsome.

Kir grinned and shifted to his knees, grabbing hold of the elf’s belt. “Well then, you gonna sleep with me or not?”

That cleared up any hesitancy the man had and he leaned forward to take the thief’s face in his hands and kiss him fiercely.

It had been a long time since Kir had had someone kissing him. He had forgotten how pleasant it felt, how stimulating it was to have someone’s tongue in his mouth, lapping at the inside of his cheeks and curling around his own tongue. He wrapped his arms around Ari’s neck and pulled the man closer, tasting the elf’s mouth, enjoying the possessive arm that wrapped around his middle.

Hands began tugging at his clothes and Kir realized that he was still fully clothed. When they parted for breath, he hastily began to pull the clothes from his body, tossing them onto the floor without a care. Ari laughed at him.

“Don’t laugh. You get naked too.”

The elf nodded, still chortling to himself, and pulled his last article of clothing off. He folded it neatly and placed it with the rest of his clothes on the corner of the bed. Before he could turn back, he felt Kir on his back, pawing at his chest.

“C’mon.” The human whined.

The enthusiasm was heartwarming in an odd way. Ari turned and grabbed the thief by the waist and tossed him flat on the bed. He leaned over the young man, straddling his body, but Kir shifted up and grabbed him around the neck to pull the man on top of him. He laughed at the surprised grunt Ari let out, then ran his tongue along the pointed tip of the elf’s ear.

In the spare moments for rational thought that Kir had, he realized that he had never had a lover of another race. He wondered what it would be like to bed an elf, or if they had any strange rituals in bed. When Ari pulled away and began to stroke himself, Kir looked down at the man and had to attempt to suppress a noise of surprise and appreciation. He wondered if all elves were as well endowed as his was.

“What are you staring at?” Ari asked, running his hand along his shaft.

“At your big elf cock.”

Sometimes, Ari had to admit, the strange and stupid things Kir said made him laugh. He grabbed the human by the shoulder and pulled him in for a kiss, then took his hand from his body and slid it between Kir’s legs. The thief gasped and tensed, then opened his legs wider in invitation.

The feel of the man’s fingers sliding up his thigh, rubbing at his puckered entrance, then ghosting across his cock was wonderful. Kir sighed, falling back into the pillows and bit his lip, waiting, wanting more. The elf’s hands moved over his body, smoothing down his thighs then creeping up to caress the skin of his stomach, going further to test the firm muscle of his chest. Kir made a soft squeak when Ari pinched his nipples.

A finger pressed against his lips a moment later and Kir opened his mouth, taking the finger in and sucking on it. He touched Ari’s wrist, running his hand down the man’s arm as he twirled his tongue around the finger in his mouth. When the elf pulled his finger free, it was warm and coated in saliva.

Ari kissed the human again then pulled away, settling his body between Kir’s legs. He spread the young man’s thighs wider and pressed the wet digit against his entrance. The human tensed with a groan. Ari paused, and then pressed the tip of his finger into the human’s body. It took several long moments to work his finger inside of Kir with the thief constantly tensing and digging his nails into the elf’s arms in a signal to stop.

Once his finger was in, Ari twisted it, reveling in the feel of the young man’s soft, warm passage. He carefully pulled his finger partially from Kir’s body, then pushed it back in. He mimicked the motion several times, waiting for the human’s body to open up and accept the intruding digit, before pressing a second finger at the thief’s entrance. Kir jumped, aware of the second finger trying to enter him. He was about to protest when Ari leaned up and kissed him fiercely. The kiss was so sudden and passionate that Kir forgot about the second finger that was pressing into him and pulled the elf on top of him.

When Ari twisted his fingers, curling them against a sensitive spot inside of him, Kir broke free from the elf’s mouth and gasped. He shuddered and after he had managed to gather his scattered thoughts, Ari repeated the motion. Kir curled his fingers in the blanket and moaned, body arching off the bed. He relished the feel of the man’s fingers inside of him, playing with him, driving him to the brink of ecstasy.

When the elf pulled his fingers free, Kir let out a disappointed groan. He sat up slightly and looked at Ari.

“Why are you stopping?”

The man grinned at him, hand stroking cock once more. “To get to the good part. Lay back.”

The thief did as he was told. He was anxious and shifted obediently when the elf pulled his lower half onto his lap. When the tip of Ari’s cock brushed against his entrance, he tensed, but forced himself to relax for fear that Ari might stop.

Ari braced his arms on either side of the human and pushed himself inside of Kir with two forceful thrusts. He felt slightly guilty when he heard the young man let out a pained squeak, but he knew that, with their size difference, it was best to get in and let the thief adjust to him. He held still for a minute, waiting for the tremors to leave Kir’s body before he pulled out an inch and then pushed back in. He repeated the motion several more times and slowly the human’s body began to give way and welcome the size and length of him.

He started thrusting with more vigor, encouraged by the soft moans and whimpers Kir let out. The thief’s body welcomed him, pulled him into tight, hot heat that drove him mad with desire. He human clamped around his cock and he let out a groan of intense pleasure.

The man got bolder and pulled himself almost all the way out before slamming back into the young man’s eager body. Kir wrapped his body around the elf, pulling him in deeper. The contact inflamed him and Ari began to thrust faster, feeling the building heat in his belly and giving in to it.

Ari built up a quick, powerful rhythm, which rocked the human into the mattress. Kir made soft squeaking sounds, pleased with the intimate attention. He bucked forward, eagerly meeting the man’s thrusts. He raked his nails down the elf’s back and he heard Ari growl in his ear, an animalistic noise that sounded pleased.

The man shifted position suddenly, pulling back and forcing Kir’s legs to his chest. The human let out an indignant meep, which was quickly cut off by a loud moan when Ari began to pound into him with renewed passion. Moments later, the man stiffened, clenching his teeth and spurting deep inside Kir’s body. The thief gasped at the feeling of the man’s hot seed coating his insides. He held onto Ari, waiting for the shudders of ecstasy to leave the man’s body before whining and reminding the elf that he was still stiff and waiting for release.

Ari laughed, then continued to thrust into the human. His thrusts were softer than before, but had enough force to make the thief’s toes curl. He moved a hand up to Kir’s chest and rubbed the pads of his fingers against the young man’s nipple. Kir tensed, letting out a sequel and uttered a plea for release. Ari grunted, surprised, and wrapped his hand around the human’s cock, pumping fervently. The added sensation of the elf’s strong, warm finger circling his cock sent Kir over the edge moments later. When he came, he arched off the bed violently, forcing himself into the man’s hand.

Ari continued to stroke him, milking him of his semen. When the human was spent, he pulled his hand away to shake it clean. He flopped down beside Kir and let out a breath. He glanced at the thief, amused at the way the human panted heavily, as if he had just run a great distance.

Once he had caught his breath, Kir rolled closer to the elf and buried his face in his chest. “No more dumb girl elves.” He said.

“No more dumb girl elves.” Ari assented.

Kir pressed closer, losing himself in the warmth of the man’s body.

“Just do me a favor.” Ari said, leaning close to the young man’s ear.

“Eh? What’s that?”

“Don’t tell Emery about this.”

“Emery? Why? Why should he care?”

The elf shrugged. “He’s young and might not understand such things. Besides, it best not to publicize this when we have such an important task to focus on.”

Kir stuck out his lip, pouting. “But we can still do this when we’re alone?”

Ari laughed. “We can. Just keep your mouth shut about it.”

“You’re really mean sometimes, you know that?” He rolled onto the man’s stomach and played with the edges of man’s bangs.

“I know. It comes with age.”

They snuggled together for the remainder of the night, or to be more accurate, Kir snuggled up against Ari’s side. The elf draped an arm across his back and kept him close, pressed against his warm body. As they settled in for sleep, the man wondered what had possessed him to take the young human to his bed. He marveled at himself and at the odd choice of companion he had made. With any luck, he thought as he heard soft snoring coming from the human, Kir would not drive him mad. He had little hope in that matter though. Just sleeping with him in the same room, much less the same bed, was maddening frustrating.

END

I hope you're all enjoying the plot and the characters so far.