Work Text:
There were far more elves in Melini than had ever been around when it was simply the Island. Kabru found himself explaining things about elves to others that he’d never thought he’d have to explain.
Like Mithrun. Neither of them had much time between Kabru assisting Yaad and Mithrun scouring Melini for the last of the monsters, yet they’d tumbled into bed together for the first time a few months ago. “I wonder if I can still want this,” Mithrun had said, right before he proved that he could. The threads of Mithrun’s want were so delicate that Kabru feared that too much thought on his part would break them.
Kabru couldn’t lie to himself that he wouldn’t be devastated if that happened.
And now, those threads were in danger because Kabru hadn’t thought to explain to everyone working with him that the pretty elf who visited occasionally was male. Kabru had found out far too late that his staff had been gossiping that he had not one, but two elven lovers—a man and a woman.
The man was Mithrun to people who’d heard his voice, and the woman came from people who’d only seen Mithrun in the hall. Kabru hoped that he’d be able to laugh about the misunderstanding soon.
Mithrun had cornered Kabru at his desk. His arms were folded across his chest.
“Are you cheating on me?” Mithrun asked. His flat voice was inflected by a tone Kabru wasn’t used to—fear? But it couldn’t be that.
Kabru’s happiness at Mithrun deciding that they had a relationship to ruin was interrupted by a vision of Mithrun teleporting his cock through the window. “No.”
“Then why are people talking about an elven woman being seen coming in and out of your room?”
“You’re the elven woman.”
Mithrun’s expression turned puzzled. “But I’m a man.”
“My staff can’t tell.”
Mithrun tilted his head, the idea of someone getting his gender wrong clearly rattling around his brain. “I’m not particularly feminine.”
“To other elves, no. To humans?” Kabru felt a little more like himself now that Mithrun wasn’t going to separate his genitals from his body. “You’re an ethereal beauty,” he said with a wink. “With an aura of grace and fragility.”
Mithrun lifted a hand to his cropped ear. By elf standards, Mithrun’s beauty was long gone. Mithrun reached out to take Kabru by the wrist and pulled him away from his desk.
“Where are we going?” Kabru asked.
“To your room.”
“Are you upset with me?” Kabru said. Kabru hadn’t said ‘angry,’ because Mithrun reserved that emotion for monsters and demons.
“No.”
The gossip was going to spread beyond Kabru’s staff and to the rest of the capitol—Yaad’s right hand had been dragged off by an elf for a sexy escapade. Kabru didn’t care. He was going through what was on Mithrun’s mind.
- Mithrun’s deep insecurity had made him prey to the demon
- Mithrun felt like they were in a relationship
- Mithrun thought Kabru had been cheating on him with an elven woman
- Mithrun must want to scream right now
But Mithrun didn’t scream, he merely shoved Kabru against the wall after he closed the bedroom door.
“Are you human enough to think I’m beautiful?” Mithrun asked.
“It’s not just about me being human,” Kabru replied, clutching Mithrun’s slender waist before dragging his hands all the way up to Mithrun’s ears. He avoided touching the tips where Mithrun had doubtlessly lost feeling. Elves were still sensitive along the backs of their ears, which Kabru started to softly rub. Mithrun already looked a little less tense. “I’d think you were beautiful if I were an elf, too.”
“You’d know,” Mithrun said, right before he pulled Kabru’s head down to his level for a kiss.
Mithrun was kissing Kabru desperately, biting Kabru’s lip when he wasn’t fast enough to open his mouth. Kabru could barely breathe. Mithrun’s mouth was hot on his own as Mithrun efficiently stripped Kabru of his belt. When Mithrun tried to break the kiss, Kabru followed the dip of his head. Mithrun pressed Kabru’s wrists to the wall and thrust his hard cock up against him.
“Kabru.” Mithrun said Kabru’s name like it meant something. Kabru was struck by pity that he knew Mithrun would hate at the same time that he wanted to wrap himself in how Mithrun had said his name. He kissed Mithrun again, putting one arm around him the moment the grip on his wrist was loosened.
Mithrun abruptly dropped to his knees and pulled down Kabru’s trousers. Kabru lifted up his tunic to get a better view of Mithrun taking his cock into his mouth without any hesitation, wrapping his fingers around what he couldn’t fit. Mithrun’s wet tongue flicked against the head and drew a gasp out of Kabru. They never skipped straight to sex like this; Kabru liked to draw out the foreplay, touching Mithrun everywhere until he was more than certain that Mithrun truly wanted to be fucked.
But there wasn’t any doubting that Mithrun wanted Kabru now. Mithrun was softly moaning around Kabru’s cock, as if the act was pleasuring him as much as Kabru.
“I won’t replace you,” Kabru blurted out, burying his hands in Mithrun’s silver hair.
Mithrun gripped Kabru’s thigh with his free hand. The pressure of his short nails made Kabru’s skin tingle. The feeling intensified as the noise of Mithrun sucking him grew louder, interrupted by his panting breaths—
Kabru came in Mithrun’s mouth, too suddenly to warn him. Mithrun swallowed everything while Kabru watched and tugged on his hair. He didn’t get back to his feet until he’d licked Kabru’s cock clean, cum briefly glazing his lips before he wiped his mouth.
“I’m not finished with you,” Mithrun said.
Even though Kabru had just come, his cock did its best to get hard again. They stumbled into bed, struggling to get their clothes off. Mithrun ended up exactly where Kabru wanted him to be—underneath him. Kabru undid the well-hidden fastenings of Mithrun’s long tunic while Mithrun clumsily kept trying to lift Kabru’s shirt over his head.
They were basically wrestling, at this point. Mithrun wriggled out from under Kabru and flipped him over, using Kabru’s own shirt to restrain his arms as he straddled him. With his tunic half off, exposing his neck and his scarred shoulder, Mithrun had the same slight smirk as when he’d taken out the Shadow Governor’s men all by himself.
“You’ve won, Captain,” Kabru said teasingly. Mithrun let Kabru tug the last of his sleeves off his arms. Kabru took on his most convincing tone, the one that’d gotten him into dozens of beds as he caressed where Mithrun’s waist was bared. “You should let me make things up to you after I came so early.”
Soothed, Mithrun let Kabru fully take off his tunic and rolled onto his back with just a light push. Kabru slid one hand down Mithrun’s trousers to briefly grope his cock—that really made him more cooperative. Mithrun’s good eyelid fluttered when Kabru went from massaging Mithrun’s scalp all the way down to his fingertips.
“Are you trying to put me to sleep?” Mithrun asked.
“I’m buying myself time.”
Kabru briefly let Mithrun go so he could pull off both their trousers. Finally being naked together felt like winning a battle. Kabru pressed their bodies together, gladly kissing Mithrun again without their height difference making it awkward. Mithrun tensed and sighed when Kabru went back to touching his cock. It wasn’t long before Kabru’s hand wandered lower.
“I’ll ease the way,” Mithrun mumbled, running his fingers between his legs and over Kabru’s cock.
Lubrication spells really were useful.
Mithrun opened his legs the moment Kabru touched Mithrun’s soft thigh and then brushed his fingers over his hole. Kabru wouldn’t be able to go slow today, not with Mithrun insistently tugging at his wrist as he was starting to get hard for a second time.
“I’m sorry,” Kabru said, wishing Mithrun hadn’t come to him as upset as he had just to find out that he was jealous of himself. “I’ll make sure everyone knows I’m only with you.”
Mithrun didn’t reply, just tightly wrapped his arms around Kabru when Kabru slipped the first finger inside him. Kabru didn’t get the gasp he wanted until he added the second and found the right spot. Mithrun sounded gorgeous, making Kabru impatiently rut against him.
After Mithrun had slightly relaxed beneath him, Mithrun told Kabru to get on with it. Kabru didn’t argue. He hiked up Mithrun’s legs so he was at the right angle to press inside. Kabru’s shoulder ached with his first careful thrust; Mithrun had sat up to bite him.
“Does that mean you like it?” Kabru teased, pushing Mithrun back down.
“More.”
Kabru ran his hands along Mithrun’s skin, feeling every scar. No human would’ve expected Mithrun’s body to be such a map of old pain—not after the demon had left the skin of his face so pristine. Kabru was gradually able to bottom out inside Mithrun, unable to resist a moan when their bodies fully fit together.
Mithrun was insistent on being fucked, clutching at Kabru and urging him to go faster. It was exactly what Kabru wanted, too. Mithrun had barely been ready, his body so tight around Kabru that Kabru worried he’d come too early again.
“Kabru,” Mithrun whined, tugging on Kabru’s hair.
“I’m not interested in anyone else,” Kabru said. It had been painfully true since their first time together.
Mithrun gripped Kabru’s hair harder, a shiver going through him. Struggling to find desires again had left Mithrun so vulnerable whenever he tried. Kabru always found himself praising Mithrun while they fucked, complimenting everything he could think of. Mithrun’s nails were digging into Kabru’s back as he started to tremble. Kabru only had to last a little longer; he didn’t even have to touch Mithrun’s cock, just tell him that he was wanted.
Muffling a cry, Mithrun bit Kabru again as he came, hard enough that Kabru knew it’d leave a mark. Kabru was relieved to follow him over. Climaxing again so quickly left Kabru feeling exhausted, so he pulled Mithrun towards himself as he lay on his side. He didn’t care about having Mithrun’s cum all over his stomach.
“Don’t teleport it,” Kabru mumbled when he felt Mithrun’s hand move towards his stomach. “Last time I found a stain under my pillow.”
“It’s sticky.”
Kabru grabbed a corner of the bedsheet to wipe off the cum. He left what was between Mithrun’s legs for now, since Mithrun wasn’t complaining.
“Do you think we’re a couple?” Kabru asked. He didn’t have to see Mithrun’s face to know that a line of tension had appeared between his brows. “Because it makes me happy.”
“Good.”
Kabru hugged Mithrun closer, before pulling away just far enough to see his face. “Does this mean you’ll visit me more?”
“Maybe,” Mithrun replied, smirking. “You could always come visit me instead.”
“I’ll pass on the monsters.”
Kabru ran his fingers through Mithrun’s hair, enjoying simply being with him.
It’d been three weeks since Kabru’s lover of apparently debatable gender had visited. Kabru was starting to feel gloomy.
What had happened to Kabru? Looking back, Kabru should’ve expected this ever since their first day in the dungeon. Kabru had spent some time watching Mithrun sleep. With his eyelids closed and his face at rest, Mithrun’s frown lines disappeared. He had looked like he’d never been a lord of the dungeon, with beautiful, tender features. Kabru had pressed his fingers to the sides of Mithrun’s mouth, trying to recreate his usual grim expression. He couldn’t.
Pitying Mithrun was quite easy. His was a tragic tale, after all. But Kabru hadn’t pitied Mithrun since Melini had risen from the sea. Mithrun was putting himself back together into a person who was stronger than he’d ever been before.
Kabru just wished that person wasn’t away so much. Mithrun had Kabru moping at his desk, daydreaming about delicate, strong hands on his.
“There’s a woman here to see you, sir,” said one of Kabru’s assistants.
Was it Milsiril checking in on him? Or maybe Rin was visiting?
Kabru had a hard time believing who he was seeing. Mithrun was wearing a blue satin dress that seemed like a mix of human and elven styles, with a bodice cinching his already small waist and a skirt reaching the floor. Expensive lace trim and the occasional bow gave a more feminine look to the dress than a classically elven one would’ve had. The scars beside his throat, usually hidden, were left startlingly exposed by the dress’s low collar.
“Captain,” Kabru blurted out.
Mithrun glanced up at Kabru with a challenging look that didn’t match how he was demurely clasping his hands in front of him. Kabru didn’t know what to say, so he took Mithrun’s hand.
“Should we go to my room?” Kabru asked.
Kabru’s assistant averted her eyes while Mithrun nodded. Mithrun probably hadn’t said a word to her, just walked in and waited for her to fetch Kabru. Kabru was once again rushing off to his bedroom with an elf.
“What are you doing?” Kabru calmly asked the moment he’d closed the door behind them.
“Being your other lover, too.”
Kabru raised his eyebrows. “Are you jealous of yourself?”
Mithrun thought for a moment. “Yes.”
It was almost funny, except for how seriously Mithrun was taking it. Was he still hurt? “All right,” Kabru said, leaning down to kiss Mithrun’s forehead. He tilted up Mithrun’s chin so he could take his time kissing his lips. “You can be her today.”
Mithrun was much more pliant this time than the last, letting Kabru pick him up to bring him to bed. Kabru had no plans to take off the dress. After he laid Mithrun down, he reached for the hem of Mithrun’s skirt and hiked it up far enough to stroke his thigh. There was so much fabric that Mithrun’s slender body seemed almost lost in it.
“You’re still beautiful, Mithrun,” Kabru said, before he kissed Mithrun above his glass eye. Next were the tips of Mithrun’s cropped ears. Kabru resisted saying ‘perfect,’ because Mithrun wouldn’t believe him. As it was, Mithrun’s breathing had quickened with every kiss. “I want you so much.”
Mithrun’s grip on Kabru’s waist started to feel like a vice. Kabru slowly licked the scar on Mithrun’s throat, making him gasp. Mithrun was writhing beneath Kabru as he was touched. The dress made Mithrun feel different, clinging in unexpected places and loose in others. Kabru straddled Mithrun’s thighs and undid a few of the laces on the bodice. He yanked the bodice open, sliding his hand beneath to feel Mithrun’s flat chest.
“Which me do you like better?” Mithrun asked.
He would ask that sort of question while Kabru was hard. Kabru rubbed one of Mithrun’s nipples through the satin so he could watch him squirm a little. “Whoever you want to bring to bed.”
Mithrun frowned.
“I was being honest,” Kabru replied. “Dress however you like. Start a rumor that I’m cheating on you with a clown.”
Mithrun snorted, as close to laughter as Kabru was going to get. Remembering what Mithrun had done last time, Kabru lifted Mithrun’s skirt up over his waist to expose his cock. Kabru had the vague impulse that he ought to do something romantic—maybe two dozen lit candles and someone playing a lyre outside—before tenderly making love to Mithrun. It was what Mithrun’s exposed feelings deserved.
In lieu of candlelight, Kabru took Mithrun’s dick into his mouth.
“Ah, Kabru—”
Mithrun was big enough that giving head meant an aching jaw that Kabru didn’t mind. The sounds Mithrun made, the way he’d reach behind him to grip the headboard, his shaking thighs and staggered breathing made it all worth it. Mithrun looked especially pretty now, his cheeks and collarbones flushed above the soft blue of the dress. He was so shameless and hid nothing.
“I want you to fuck me,” Mithrun said.
Kabru nodded, squeezing Mithrun’s thighs as he tried to take Mithrun even deeper into his mouth. Mithrun threw his head back with a whine.
“I’ll come too soon if you don’t stop,” Mithrun added.
Kabru paused, licking the head of Mithrun’s cock a few times before he spoke. “And? You’ll just get hard again. I want my revenge for before.”
Mithrun looked down at Kabru and pressed two fingers to Kabru’s lower lip, watching Kabru kiss and swirl his tongue around them. It felt like Mithrun was yielding when he took hold of Kabru’s scalp to press his mouth down. Kabru happily went back to sucking his dick. Mithrun’s hand gently resting in his hair turned Kabru on as much as the moaning. Soon, Mithrun started to tug on Kabru’s curls and repeat his name.
“I’m close,” Mithrun gasped. “Kabru—”
Mithrun let go of Kabru’s hair and came with a moan. Kabru swallowed, ignoring the bitter taste. Mithrun seemed a little breathless; it was a good look on him. “I’m not finished with you,” Kabru said, echoing what Mithrun had said earlier.
Kabru pulled Mithrun into his arms and greedily pressed their lips together. Mithrun made a surprised noise before seeming to melt into Kabru’s embrace. There was always a moment of disbelief when Kabru touched Mithrun, when the icy and grim figure revealed himself to be just as sensitive as anyone else. Mithrun didn’t entirely lose the sternness with his clothes, though—Kabru’s cock always felt like it had to be on its most impressive behavior.
Something felt new, and it wasn’t just what Mithrun was wearing. Kabru figured it out quickly as Mithrun laced their fingers together. They were lovers now, with all the complications that’d come with it. Kabru couldn’t resist smiling against Mithrun’s mouth.
“What’s that for?” Mithrun asked.
“You.”
Mithrun glanced away while faint pink colored his cheekbones. He didn’t get embarrassed, but Kabru must’ve hit a nerve. Kabru took advantage of the moment and pressed kisses to Mithrun’s cheeks and throat. Mithrun was acting so submissively that Kabru suspected teleportation magic when he abruptly found himself flat on his back, with Mithrun on top of him.
It did seem like one of Mithrun’s favorite places to be. Mithrun dispassionately tugged off Kabru’s clothes. Then, he lifted up his dress, clearly about to straddle Kabru.
“Let me prep you first—” Kabru said, steadying Mithrun by the thighs.
“Already did.”
Kabru’s hands went to Mithrun’s waist, gripping him as Mithrun slowly settled onto Kabru’s dick. Only the slight furrow between Mithrun’s brows betrayed any discomfort from Kabru entering him. Mithrun felt too tight, even with the lubricant helping Kabru slide in. Kabru gasped when Mithrun’s body was at last flush with his.
“Good?” Mithrun asked.
Kabru nodded. He ran his hands up and down Mithrun’s sides, enjoying the texture of satin beneath his fingers as Mithrun began to roll his hips. Kabru felt pinned. Mithrun was so warm inside, unlike his perpetually cold hands and feet. Kabru’s hand wandered below Mithrun’s waist to where he could feel him getting hard again. Mithrun’s head was tilted to the side, his hair covering his false eye and hiding his ears. Like that, Mithrun gave the illusion of being whole. Kabru didn’t know that version of Mithrun, so he reached up to tuck Mithrun’s hair behind his ear.
“There you are,” Kabru said.
Mithrun grabbed Kabru’s hand, flicking his pink tongue over Kabru’s fingertips to make him twitch. Kabru bit his lip when Mithrun kissed his palm. The tender moment faded into something else as Mithrun braced his hands against Kabru’s waist and started riding him in earnest. Kabru felt like he suddenly couldn’t get enough breath in his lungs. Mithrun still had that faint stiffness in his back, his posture perfect even during sex. Desperately, Kabru held on to Mithrun’s hips to get the angle just right to make Mithrun moan and pant.
Neither of them would last long like this. Kabru sat up, holding Mithrun in his lap and keeping his slender body close as he thrust up into him. Mithrun’s nails dug into Kabru’s shoulders while his breathing turned uneven. Kabru struggled with all the fabric of the dress to finally wrap his hand around Mithrun’s cock. Mithrun kissed him, though it was more of a bite.
Kabru came first. He was still just hard enough to keep fucking Mithrun when he felt Mithrun suddenly whimper and go slack in his arms. Kabru’s hand and the dress’s skirt were both a mess.
“Satisfied?” Kabru asked. He buried his free hand in Mithrun’s hair, kissing his jawline. “Do I feel loyal enough for you?”
“For now,” Mithrun said smugly.
Kabru laughed. “You’re demanding.”
“You said I should want things.”
“You’re doing really well,” Kabru replied. Wanting to feel closer, Kabru undid the rest of Mithrun’s bodice and pulled the dress over his head to expose his scarred body.
Mithrun allowed Kabru to pull him down to lie next to him in bed. As he idly stroked Mithrun’s skin, Kabru’s mind wandered. Mithrun had made so much progress with desire that he was almost a different person from the man Kabru had seen sitting against a tree, his face a terrifying blank. But… Mithrun wasn’t entirely a different person. Even back then, Kabru had seen the shadow of who Mithrun could be.
“I think I’ve fallen in love with you,” Kabru said, before his brain could catch up with his heart. Idiot, he’d ruined it all and would scare Mithrun away. “You don’t have to return it, it’s fine—”
Mithrun held Kabru back from turning around. “I’ll try,” he said, his voice firm. Kabru’s heart, already racing from panic, beat still faster.
“I think I can do it,” Mithrun added. There was a look of vulnerability on his face that seemed too personal, like Kabru shouldn’t have seen something so raw. “I care about you. I don’t want you to ever leave me.”
“I won’t,” Kabru said. He was certain of it. Kabru held on to Mithrun tightly, feeling like it would hurt to let go. “I won’t.”