Disclaimer: I do not own Tales of the Abyss or any of its properties.

Notes: This was written forever ago as a response to a prompt on tumblr. I've finally decided to update this account with something, though, and thought it this was still good enough to make it here.

The Talk

There was never really a good time to give Luke "The Talk."

Guy knew that he had to. He was the only one who could. Back at the manor, he was the only one with either the ability or the desire to actually raise Luke, to make sure he ate halfway decently, got to bed at a good time, took baths when he was dirty. Guy was the one to sit with and entertain him when he was sick, to make sure he was making progress in his diary entries, and make sure that on the rare days it snowed, Luke was dressed properly when he went out to play. Guy was the one responsible for taking care of him, and therefore, if anyone was going to give Luke "The Talk," it was going to be Guy.

But a good opportunity never came up. Things weren't too busy at the manor, so it wasn't as if neither of them had had time, but Guy didn't see a reason to sit Luke down and make both of them suffer through it. It wasn't as if there was anyone at the manor Luke was going to have sex with any time soon, after all, so what was the rush? There wasn't one. Guy put it off on an indefinite hiatus, figuring that he would deal with it when the time came.

Now the time had come, and it still didn't seem to be the right time.

Guy tried to make excuses. The Outer Lands were falling, and they had to deal with that. Luke was still reeling from what had happened in Akzeriuth. The God-Generals could attack at any moment. Grand Maestro Mohs was trying to kickstart the war. There were any number of excuses that could be used to postpone Guy giving Luke "The Talk," but even as his brain hurriedly conjured more of them just in case the others started to look weak or fall apart, Guy knew he couldn't put it off forever. However many problems were going on right now, there was no denying the fact that Luke paid Tear an increasing amount of attention. There was no denying that the subject of his engagement to Princess Natalia would continue to come up with alarming frequency now that they were traveling together. There was no denying that every time they ran into Noir, she seemed to make it her mission to throw at least one or two suggestive comments Luke's way, all while taking her sweet time running her fingers along his stomach every time she swiped his wallet.

No, the truth was, there would never be a good time to give Luke "The Talk," but all the same, Guy knew he had to get it over with.

The night the inn in Belkend only had three rooms to spare, thus forcing them to share one for the night, Guy decided to take advantage of the opportunity.

Luke had faceplanted onto his bed the second they entered the room after dinner, smooshing his face against the pillow and stretching his legs out. Guy lingered by the door, debating over whether or not he should lock it, before he finally decided against it and walked over to drop down onto his own bed. He could tell by the rise and fall of Luke's back that he hadn't fallen asleep yet, but before Luke could either do that or speak up himself, Guy steeled his courage and said:

"Hey, Luke, can I talk to you for a second?"

"Hm?" Luke rolled over onto his side, and propped himself up on his elbow. "What is it?"

"I—" Guy stopped, unsure now that he'd started how to continue, and Luke frowned, sitting up properly.

"Is . . . something wrong?" From the way Luke shifted and looked away, Guy guessed that Luke thought he was about to get yelled at. Guy shook his head.

"No—well, not really. It's not like that, you haven't done anything wrong." Luke looked back, a hesitant smile curling his lips.

"Okay . . . then what's up? You're acting weird."

"Well . . . it's about something you might do, in the future. Something you might want to do, or something others might want to do with you, without you knowing what it is that either of you want to do, completely, and I want to make sure you're prepared in case that happens."

"Uh." Luke rubbed a hand through his short hair, frowning all the more. "I'm confused. That doesn't make any sense. What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about—Yulia, why does it have to be me . . . okay." Guy took a deep breath, placed his hands on his knees, and looked Luke straight in the eyes. "I'm talking about—Luke, you don't know what sex is, right?"

For a few seconds, silence stretched between them. When Luke finally spoke it was in a cautionary tone, as if he wasn't positive that he was giving the right answer. "That's . . . some kind of . . . thing that two people can share, right? Like a kind of food? I heard some of the maids talking about it back at the manor, sometimes. They said they wanted to have it with you . . . and some of them said that Father liked to have it with General Cecille, too." Luke shrugged. "I asked some of the cooks to make me some once and they said I couldn't have it, so I figured it was some kind of thing that two or more people had to share. Why? Was Anise thinking of making some the next time we had dinner or something? Is it gross?"

Guy stared at Luke, open mouthed, mildly horrified. He didn't know where to begin. Did he address the fact that Luke overheard the maids saying they wanted to sleep with him? Did he address the fact that the maids were gossiping about the Duke and Jozette's debauchery openly enough for Luke to overhear them? Did he think about the fact that Luke had unknowingly questioned the cooks about sex, and yet none of them saw fit to tell Guy that this had happened? Or did he focus on trying to banish the image of Anise making a sexy dinner for Luke out of his mind (which, however gung-ho she was about trying to marry rich, he hoped she'd wait a few more years for)? Whatever the case, as the seconds ticked on Luke started to look even more uncomfortable and confused. Guy had to say something, even if it was hard for him to figure out what, exactly, he should say. He cleared his throat, and rubbed the back of his neck.

"It's . . . gross is one way of putting it." For Luke, anyway. For now. He was only seven years old, sex could wait for awhile yet, as far as Guy was concerned (which was yet another excuse Guy wanted to latch onto, to make "The Talk" go away, but if Luke had already heard things like this about it, then it made all the more important for misconceptions to be cleared up). "Sex isn't a food, Luke. It's an . . . activity."

"Oh." Luke blinked, processing this information, before he asked, "Like a game or something?"

"Or something." Guy took a deep breath, released it, and then said, "Sex is something that two or more people—usually adults, or at least people older than you—do when they find each other attractive. Sometimes they love each other, sometimes they don't, but when they have sex with each other, usually it's because they're attracted to each other in . . . that way."

"Uh, okay." Luke shifted on the bed, now appearing as uncomfortable as Guy felt. "So, uh . . . I still don't get it. It's a thing that people do, but . . . what's it like?"

"It's like . . ." What was he supposed to say? As Luke stared at him, eyes wide and expectant, all Guy could think about was the version of "The Talk" that Pere had given him years ago, back when the maids at the Fabre manor had first started winking and giggling at him in the corridors. Having had no experience of his own to describe to Luke, Guy felt himself at a loss. He cast his eyes around the room, praying for some sort of guidepost to point him in the right direction, but when none came, he sighed. "It's like . . . it's a physical thing, kind of like wrestling. Except all participants usually have their clothes off for this, and—"

"Wait, it's like naked wrestling?" Luke interrupted, and Guy nodded. "What would you want to do that for? That's embarrassing! Other people aren't supposed to see you naked."

Guy couldn't help it; he laughed a little at the scandalized look on Luke's face. "Well, when you're attracted to someone like that, you usually do want to see them naked, and you want them to see you naked, too," he said. "It's all a part of sex. Good sex, anyway. If they don't want you to see them naked, and if you don't want them to see you naked, then don't do it. Everyone involved has to want it and say "yes" for it to be okay."

"Okay, but why would anyone want to do that?" Luke pressed. "I like Tear a lot and think she's really pretty, but I wouldn't want to see her naked. And I think Natalia really likes me like that, too—she's always talking about how we'll be married someday—but I don't think she wants to see me naked, either."

"I wouldn't be so sure about that," Guy said under his breath, but said a little louder, "Well, like I said, it's all part of the attraction. I think you're a bit young to realize how you feel about Tear yet, but eventually . . . well, you'll get there. But some people are there, and when they are, they . . . well . . ."

"Well what?" Luke asked flatly. "Have you ever wanted to wrestle someone while naked, Guy?"

"I've got a little problem that keeps me from doing that right now," Guy said, as embarrassment made his cheeks and neck burn. "But this isn't about me, this is about you, and what could happen if you don't know enough to either give or deny consent."

"I think I've got the general picture now," Luke said. "Sex is naked wrestling and sounds really weird and embarrassing. I'll pass forever, thanks."

"Unfortunately, I don't think it's enough that we end it there," Guy said, and Luke's eyes widened. "There's still a lot you don't know. If you don't know the specifics . . . well, it's really important that you know the specifics. Like I said, you have to know what you're potentially getting into."

"I know enough not to get naked in front of anyone that thinks I'm pretty," Luke said. "I think that's enough."

"No, it's not," Guy insisted. "So shut up a second and listen, okay? Because I'm only going to say this once."

From there, Guy launched into as thorough explanation he could about male and female anatomy, and how sex differed depending on if it was between a man and a woman or two men. The more he explained, the more horrified Luke's expression became, and by the time Guy finished, Luke looked downright traumatized.

"I was right," he croaked. "I didn't need to know all of that. I'm going to pass forever, thanks."

"Ah, come on, it wasn't that bad of an explanation," Guy said, feeling relieved and much better now that it was over. "When you're ready and you and your partner—or partners, I guess—really want it, it can be a really good thing."

"Says the guy who has never had to go through it," Luke said bluntly. He flopped back down on his bed and rolled over so that his back was to Guy. "It sounds weird and . . . really weird and I'm never gonna do it. Ever."

"Well, that's up to you, and don't ever let anyone tell you otherwise," Guy said. He kicked off his boots at last and settled back against his own pillows, staring up at the ceiling. "The important thing is that now you know, so anything that happens in the future will be a result of your own choice, rather than ignorance."

"Yeah," Luke muttered. "I guess." A few minutes passed in silence before he added, grudgingly and so quiet Guy barely heard him: "Thanks."

Guy smiled, and switched off the fonstone light between their beds. "You're welcome."