Before you start reading the fic here, we really recommend reading it on our AO3 instead where you can see illustrations and links we post (just google "Zlu_and_Luff AO3" or "Local Vicar Ruins Everything AO3"). On AO3 there is also a companion NSFW fic that is intertwined with this one (and that we can't upload here because the rules changed), so if you like NSFW stuff, then these two fics are best read together. If you ejoy our stuff, please leave us a comment and we'll love you! :3

Chapter 1

Little Joys

The last rays of the setting sun played in the deep crimson of sacramental wine. The edges of the golden goblet shone with this dying light like a burning halo.

Laurence, the Vicar of the Healing Church, lifted the cup in a silent toast. His reflection in the window followed suit. Outside the window Yharnam sprawled towards the horizon, a city on the verge of a renaissance. Under Laurence's watchful eye one after another church steeples rose to dominate the skyline. Here in the Cathedral Ward they crowded like a gathering of giants overseeing the growing city.

His city.

Laurence sipped his wine.

Yharnam had been an unimpressive cluster of hovels when he had first set his foot in it. But as his Healing Church came to prominence the city bloomed, drawing in fresh blood and money from all corners of the world. It was merely a trickle for now, but Laurence saw the promise it held. With every miraculous act of healing the story spread. Few decades more and the city would become a place of pilgrimage for every ailing soul upon this earth. Laurence could wait to see that. With the old blood in his veins he could wait far longer than that.

A knock on the door shook Laurence out of his reverie. The Vicar rested his goblet on the table next to the crystal decanter and ambled towards the door to greet his guest.

"Please, come in."

The tall doors opened, letting in a towering man, clad in silver and white. Ludwig looked at Laurence and bowed his head in greeting. "Good evening, Your Reverence. Sorry to have kept you waiting. Minor trouble down at the workshop, swiftly dealt with, of course."

"Of course." Laurence nodded. "Evening, Ludwig, do come in, take a seat." He gestured towards the two armchairs and the small table with the goblets and wine that stood by a lit fireplace. Then as his guest took his place, Laurence filled his goblet and passed it to him.

Ludwig accepted the wine with a grateful expression, taking a quick sip. "Ah, thank you, I needed this badly."

Laurence nestled into his armchair, getting comfortable between several pillows. Even the custom made armchair was too large for his rather small frame. It was a most unfortunate mistake on the part of the carpenter, who simply could not believe the famous vicar was a man of such minute proportions. Still, his companion looked much more uncomfortable and Laurence's eyes were drawn to Ludwig's broad muscular shoulders, that didn't allow the man to recline comfortably in the high back armchair he now occupied.

It seemed the hunter himself didn't pay it any heed or think it a problem. He was well used to such inconveniences. All in all, it wasn't too surprising. Ludwig always seemed to be quite aware of his size, and of the limitations, as well as the advantages that came together with it. He noticed the vicar's gaze and raised his eyebrows, "So how was your day, Laurence? I've seen but a glimpse of you today."

"It was fruitful. Another batch of Byrgenwerth's finest at our doorstep, begging to be let in on the research. A new church consecrated in Central Yharnam. And that's just the tip of the iceberg." The Vicar smiled. "A whole day of being chased about by men who need my opinion on every matter in the Church. I can't be more grateful for your leadership of the Church Hunters. I am truly blessed with such a competent and reliable subordinate." Laurence brought his cup to his lips, watching the hunter's eyes fill with that particular radiance, as he voiced his thanks, and assured the vicar of his unrelenting commitment to the cause of the Church.

Ludwig had indeed proved to be a very reliable and adequate underling. He was without a doubt a warrior few could rival, but it was his personal qualities that were the most important at that moment. As the Healing Church grew, Laurence could not hope to control every aspect of its life without proxies. And Ludwig proved to be quite invaluable as such. However the reasons for this burst of praise were entirely different. And quite primal really. Because except for his other positive qualities, Ludwig was strikingly handsome.

He wasn't the only attractive man in Laurence's claque. But he was the most trustworthy one. The affair with Gehrman had grown stale a good long while ago. The chance encounters with clerics and hunters alike were amusing, but lacked substance. Laurence felt he could use a more permanent partner and this statuesque honourable man was the perfect candidate. He was a fine piece of marble, and Laurence fancied himself quite the sculptor. Now it was merely the matter of planting the seeds in Ludwig's mind and guiding him into the unexplored territory of bedding other men. No doubt it would take a bit of time and work, but for such a fine specimen Laurence was ready to commit.

"I hope that despite your hard work and vigilance you find time for respite," Laurence said. "Little joys keep the flame of one's righteous passion burning. Tell me, Ludwig, what do you do at your leisure?"

The champion of the church hunters smiled. "Ah, well said, as always. But I'm afraid I will bore you with my answers. Isn't there something of import you wished us to discuss?"

"Something important? No, I'm afraid I have unwittingly misled you." Laurence gestured with his goblet. "My desire was merely to spend a while in your company. Last time we shared a casual chat might as well have been years ago in the underground labyrinths. It's a downright sin that a friendship such as ours should be forsaken for so long."

Ludwig frowned, just a little, as if he hadn't realized just how rarely they met this way. "Truer words have never been spoken. I wouldn't want to continue this way either. Well, it only gladdens me to hear there is no urgent matter at hand and that you would choose to relax in my company. Let us talk then." He grew pensive for a moment, as he thought on the answer to Laurence's earlier question. "As to my leisure time, I'm afraid I'm one of these men who find respite in continued work. Be it locking myself away in the workshop's smithy at night and shaping hot iron or pondering on weapons that will allow our hunters to nip the beasthood in the bud. I, hmm, I love galloping through the woods on the outskirts of Yharnam. And I do enjoy quiet moments, spent in good company. Like this one, precisely." He sipped his wine with a slight smile, watching Laurence from the tight confines of his chair. "What about you?"

"Why, I am quite like that myself. Additional research and good company are what I prefer to devote my leisure to. An occasional walk through the Ward or the gardens helps me get my thoughts into order. Sometimes I reminisce about our ventures into the catacombs, all those fascinating abominations you cut down like they were mere weeds. Such prodigious strength and skill. I imagine you hone your craft vehemently." As vehemently as I hone my mind, Laurence thought, but didn't say. There would be time for self-adoration later, now was the time to coat his prey in words of praise. Weave his little web and tighten it later.

Ludwig raised his eyebrows again and for a moment Laurence thought that he might have overdone the compliments. He was however reassured as soon as the hunter spoke again.

"Indeed, I spend a lot of time training." The lower levels of catacombs swallowed those who were not prepared to enter, both physically and mentally. The scholars used to accompany the hunters and tomb prospectors on the ventures once, but these days hunters went first, to clear the area and only then the expedition of scholars would follow. "I wouldn't propose you to descend into the labyrinths by my side again, for the beasts loom large and fire and venom rain on every turn. But perhaps we could stroll through the gardens together once?"

Laurence congratulated himself on this small but swift victory, one of many to come. "It would be my pleasure."

Ludwig smiled again. They sipped their wine and the conversation slipped onto recent developments in the church, the city, the workshops. It was idle chatter, but if he wanted to get the man into his bed, Laurence first had to rekindle the flame of friendship. Then test the unfamiliar waters, see how malleable a man he had to work with and then use his charm to slowly make the hunter notice the appeal of another man's body. So far Laurence had not met a man he couldn't seduce. This, however, looked like a long-term project. He didn't mind, he could use a distraction.

The decanter was emptied and refilled, and the sun hid behind the furthest roofs. A servant came and fed the flames in the fireplace and then lit some candles to hold back the darkness pouring over the city outside.

When they were left alone again a pleasant silence crept over the two men. Laurence was sprawled on his numerous pillows, having washed away all semblance of good manners with sacramental wine. Ludwig had found a way to recline in his chair and seemed fairly comfortable, which the vicar was very pleased about.

He studied the hunter's fine noble features, his long dark hair in which the firelight played beautifully, his muscular frame, his arms that could restlessly swing a sword Laurence couldn't hope to even lift off the ground. Ludwig was a living masterpiece. Laurence wanted some statues of him to be erected in the Cathedral Ward. But that wouldn't sit with the doctrine of the Church he had created. Perhaps a statue to keep in his private chambers… Bah, he would much rather have the hunter himself there. Laurence smirked at the thought.

Perhaps Ludwig took note of the vicar's scrutiny, as after a while he remarked that it was getting late and he had to retire for the night. "It had been an immense pleasure, but no doubt you also have an early morning with a myriad of duties to attend to," he said as he drank up the last drop of wine from his goblet and stood up so steady and straight, as if he hadn't downed three bottles of liquor they'd shared.

Laurence stirred in his armchair and then somewhat gracelessly rose to his feet as well. He hadn't realized just how drowsy the drink had made him. He straightened his clothes. "Well, yes. It was a treat. I will await our next meeting," he said, offering his hand for a handshake.

He watched in bewilderment as Ludwig bowed his head and lifted the offered hand to his lips, "Likewise, Your Reverence," said the hunter as he pressed a kiss to it, looking into Laurence's eyes with a playful expression. It wasn't all that uncommon for someone to kiss the vicar's hand but Ludwig's smile left Laurence wondering if the wine hadn't made his intentions too clear to the hunter. As the man let his hand go then and bid him farewell the vicar stared at him, quite openly baffled, hand still hovering in the air, where Ludwig had left it.

Ludwig was already mostly out of the door but he stopped then, clearly amused by the sight of the vicar caught so off guard. "I am not a stranger to the small joys and righteous passions you might have in mind, Laurence. And trust me, I've been hooked for longer than you think." With that, he graced the smaller man with another radiant smile and left.

Laurence stared at the door for a moment and then downed his wine. It was disquieting that Ludwig read him better than he read the hunter. But it made bedding him easier. Laurence looked at his own reflection in the golden goblet. It only made sense that Ludwig would be smitten - drat it, he was gorgeous. Laurence put the goblet on the table and retired to his bedroom with a bounce in his step.

Notes:

Some unused dialogue, revealing unspoken facts :P

"Tell me, Ludwig, what do you do at your leisure? Because I do half of the Church and then during work hours I do the other half."