skull_bearer | Est_20, Prompt 11- Love (Reply)

I've rather ambitiously decided to have this finished within the month, only five more to go! Of those, three have been already planned.

TITLE: Never To Be Forgotten Hospitability, Part two of three
AUTHOR: Skull Bearer
FANDOM: Dragonlance
PAIRING: Raistlin/Dalamar
GENRE: Slash
TABLE: Here
PROMPT: 11- Love
RATING: R
WORD COUNT: 1504
SUMMARY: Some places pose more questions than they answer.
WARNINGS: Non-graphic sex.
DISCLAIMER: No comment.

The meal was plain, but well cooked and filling, and washed down with several glasses of excellent wine. Youngil was apologetic that due to the weather and lack of patrons, he wouldn't be able to provide a bath. He would, however, send up two basins of hot water. Still rather staggered but starting to regain his balance, Dalamar had thanked him and asked to be shown their room. "And we will be sleeping together, thank you."

Youngil's smile faded a little, then the man gave a small, almost impercievable shrug. Leave the matters of mages to mages, it wasn't his business.

Well, this was an inn he would have minded revisiting. Frankly, after the very nice, the ridiculously small cost and the almost unheard-of respect, they could have been sent to sleep in the stable and Dalamar would still have insisted on coming here again if they were ever this way again.

The bedroom was not luxurious, but it was a lot better than a stable. The bed was quite hard, and the blankets musty, as though no one had slept here for a long time, but there was a fire in the grate and the bed would be more than large enough for both of them. The basins and a towel were resting on the low table.

Dalamar's damp robes were almost dry by now, but it was still a relief to strip them off and hang them over a chair. Raistlin carried his basin and the towel over to the fire and started getting undressed there. Dalamar might have thought the gesture entirely innocent if his handed glanced back over one shoulder with a small, secretive smile.

Dalamar smiled back. As tempting as this was, he suspected it was more teasing than promise. Raistlin must have been tired after that ride.

Even so, he had no desire to disappoint. Raistlin had just turned back to the fire when Dalamar came up behind him and rested one hand over his chest. He flexed his fingers, feeling the hard lines of the ribs pressing against the golden skin. Raistlin tiled his head to one side, invitingly, and Dalamar was happy to take advantage.

"Aren't you tired?" He murmured against his lover's neck, feeling him shiver. "You were the one who kept insisting that we stop for the night..."

"Amazing what a good meal can do." He felt Raistlin's throat vibrate with the words, and pressed a kiss against the back of his neck.

"Indeed." Then his words were lost when Raistlin turned around and kissed him firmly.

Ah, he'd missed that. As nice as it was to ride, next time Dalamar was determined to buy just one horse and ride together. Sometimes it was nice just to touch when they wanted to, and riding separately made that rather hard.

Raistlin's arms slid around him, and pulled him closer, encouraging him to sit down.

Now, this was very nice indeed, sitting together stark naked beside the crackling fire, with the rain futilely lashing the shutters outside. Their legs were hopelessly tangled, and Dalamar ran one hand fondly over Raistlin's shoulder. The skin was warm and smooth, with the slightest hint of sweat from the heat of the fire. They were both smiling.

"Well," Dalamar cleared his throat. "I don't think either of us were expecting this."

Raistlin shook his head. "Perhaps this Youngil had a relative who became a mage, or had a mage help him at a dire time. There are a lot of explanations."

"Interesting that we start looking for excuses whenever anyone is pleasant to us." Dalamar remarked.

Raistlin turned back to the fire and nodded ruefully.

Dalamar changed the subject. "Do you feel you'll need your tea tonight?"

Raistlin paused, and shrugged. "I have no idea. If that bed as dusty as it looks, probably. If not, then I doubt it. It hasn't been as bad as it could be.

"Then we will endeavour to spend every winter this far north." His fingers trailed up Raistlin's spine, raising gooseflesh.

"Well, if this Ariakas would be kind enough to stage all his campaigns here, I'd be very happy to do so. I doubt it will be very likely though."

"Probably not."

Raistlin caught his hand with both of his, "Besides, I am growing quite fond this place. I wouldn't enjoy seeing it razed."

Dalamar had to agree, partly because Raistlin was right, and partly because his lover had just brought his hand to his lips, and if Raistlin kept of sucking his fingers like this, he would agree to just about anything.

"Oh yes," His voice was hoarser than usual, "And I would be cheated of the name of that wine you had." He took a deep breath. "I would do a great deal to find out what would have this effect on you."

Raistlin looked up at him, a finger still lost in his mouth, the firelight gleaming in his hourglass eyes, and if Dalamar hadn't been hard before, he was now. He gasped as Raistlin let his hand fall and slid a little closer. "Well, that is an easy answer." His voice was like molten gold, hot and heavy, trickling down Dalamar's spine. He crept closer until his chest was pressed to Dalamar's, half-hard cock pressed against his stomach, lips brushing his ear. "You."

He couldn't help it, he groaned, and pulled Raistlin into his arms. His lover pressed a ragged line of kisses across his cheek, and their lips met again, warmly kissing. Dalamar's hands snaked up to Raistlin's shoulders and slowly eased him down, back flat again the threadbare rug.

"I thought you wanted to wash first." He whispered against Raistlin's lips.

"Not much point if we want to do this." An arm around his head, a mouth against his.

There was no hurry, no need to rush. This wasn't their couplings on the road, fast for fear of ambush and Raistlin's health. Not like the army camp, swift and silent in order not to attract attention. They could take all night if they wanted, and when they tired of the floor, there was always the bed, dusty as it might be.

For once Raistlin took the lead, hands on Dalamar’s shoulders, slowly pushing him back until his back hit the floor, and languidly stretching out on top of him. As slow and careful in lovemaking as he was in everything. And methodical. Dear Nuitari he was most definitely that. So very deliberate, never rushing, making sure they were both prepared before pressing inside him, cheek pressed against Dalamar’s shoulder, grinding in with each ever-so methodical /thrust/, eyes closed, breathing growing more and more ragged until Dalamar would have worried, if he had been able to think at all.

And when it was over and the sparks in Dalamar's vision had retreated to the fireplace, they lay together on the floor. The fire was warm, and the hard floor felt good against Dalamar's stiff back. Raistlin was still lying on top of him, elbows propped on either side of his face. He was smiling, and dipped his fingers into the bowl of water to wipe the sweat off his face, then doing the same to Dalamar's.

Dalamar caught his hand, kissing the slender fingers. His free hand gently raked up Raistlin's back, the younger mage arching like a cat under his fingernails.

"Definitely not how I was planning to spend the evening." Dalamar grinned.

Raistlin's smile faltered a little. "And how were you planning to spend it, may I ask?"

Dalamar snorted. "Outside, wet and cold and trying to keep you from being as wet and cold. I didn't expect-"

Raistlin leant forward and pulled his hand free from Dalamar's laying it across his thin lip to stop him from talking. "Do you feel that responsible for me?"

Dalamar kissed his fingers again. "Not this again. Please."

He kissed him again, making a mental note that whatever benefits the wine had as an aphrodisiac, it didn't make up for putting Raistlin in such a maudlin state. Besides it was ridiculous considering that Raistlin was currently lying on top of him, practically glowing in the firelight. Yes, it could be hard, dealing with Raistlin's broken health, but no harder than Raistlin found it dealing with his fractured mind, and the trauma that could set him off without warning. And as his lover had just demonstrated, the pay offs made it more than worth it.

He couldn't have asked for a better companions and love with whom to explore this crazy world. He couldn't even have imagined one like this.

And Raistlin must have read enough of his thoughts to understand, because he smiled again, and got up, one hand extended to beckon Dalamar to bed.