It was simple, really. Eve wanted to build team dynamic, she's always doing things to get them to bond. As a group, in parts of the group, in trios and in pairs. She sent Moriarty, Cassandra and Jenkins to some scientific convention. Moriarty bought so much merchandise, he came back looking like a tourist. Eve informed him of this, after a greeting kiss on his lips, and he informed her he might as well be a tourist, because he belongs nowhere in this world. The others in the Annex had all obligatorily busied themselves with other tasks while Eve gave Moriarty her sad knowing face, and interlaced their fingers.
She sent Jake and Ezekiel on missions together, she sent Flynn and Moriarty on missions. She took Cassandra to the spa for a girls weekend, leaving the boys to have an interesting time in the Frozen Land of Giants.
It had been a few months since Prospero had been defeated, and Moriarty had joined them. Flynn and Eve had broke up, but not in a hurtful way. It seemed to be a mutually understood thing. There was no tension between them, to the relief of the others. The last thing they needed was mom and dad fighting. There had been tension between Moriarty and Flynn, at first. But after their first mission together, something to do with Nepal and Ninja Monks, they seemed to have worked out their differences. They spent hours sitting with Jake and Cassandra, discussing stuff about philosophy and science and magic that went completely over Ezekiel's head. He spent most of that time off doing his own thing, whether it be helping Eve with some security renovations or marathoning The Walking Dead with Jenkins.
Jake and Cassandra had started volunteering to go on missions together. Just the two of them. Seemed to Ezekiel like those two were on the fast track to working out their differences. He was happy for them, of course, and happy for Moriarty and Eve.
But, if he was so happy, why did he feel so nauseous every time the couples so much as looked at each other?
"Jealousy is a fickle beast." Jenkins had commented, upon watching Ezekiel watch Jake and Cassandra talk lowly to each other across the room. Ezekiel had started, turning to stare at Jenkins.
"What? Me? Why would I be jealous?" He had demanded, hoping to deflect the knowing look the immortal was giving him. Jenkins just shrugged, smiling like he knew something Ezekiel didn't, and kept pushing his cart across the annex. Ezekiel had glanced at the other Librarians, across the room, to make sure they hadn't heard Jenkin's accusation.
Pssh. Him? Jealous? He was a lone wolf anyways. Besides, a few couples in a group didn't stop making it a group. And Jenkins and Flynn weren't with anyone. Yet.
Ezekiel had a feeling that it Jenkins were to be with anyone, it would be some timeless entity or immortal being, and that was all his business. He didn't seem the romantic type anyways. Well, not anymore.
As for Flynn...Ezekiel had a hard time envisioning anyone Flynn could last with. It would have to be someone who understood his work, and he'd blown it with Eve. It would have to be someone who could keep up with his rapid off the wall pace, and Cassandra was with Jake, and practically like a daughter to the guy. It would have to be someone who understood how selflessly selfish the older librarian could be, someone who understood his walls and his isolation. Someone who understood what it was to be alone. Someone who didn't want to be grounded, tied down. Someone who would be step by step with him, jumping up and running all over the world. Someone who could engage his mind, not shut it in.
Ezekiel blinked, having caught himself heading down an interesting and confusing train of thought. He shook his head, trying to force the strange feeling in his chest away. He stood, and followed after Jenkins.
"Up for a movie marathon, man?"
"Only if you allow me to choose this time." The caretaker said. Ezekiel rolled his eyes, knowing full well the old man would choose Top Gun again.
Over the course of the next few weeks, Ezekiel couldn't stop thinking about the oldest Librarian. They argued, not intensely, but they certainly bickered. Ezekiel didn't like the way Flynn still tried to dictate things. Flynn didn't like the way Ezekiel acted as if everything was a game to him. Oh, if only he knew.
Ezekiel did like how quick Flynn was, how excitable. He both admired the man's brilliance and couldn't help but envy it. He found himself watching the way Flynn's fingers tapped and twirled and fidgeted when he was still. The way his eyes lit up when he was onto something, when he realized something, the way he spun around in a circle as he moved from one raging train of thought to another. He liked the shape of the man's jaw and the sharp ratio of his frame. He liked the dumb layered suits he wore.
And he really, really hated how much he enjoyed being infuriated by him. He liked pushing the man's buttons, he liked how Flynn pushed back. Jake just got frustrated with him and left in a huff. Flynn knew better than to be fooled by the difference between Ezekiel and Ezekiel's image, but he didn't just roll his eyes, he didn't just nod or huff or give him a sad smile. He rose to every occasion and sparked a tension between them, that was hot like fire, and Ezekiel was ashamed of how he started to go out of his way to press against the flames.
So, as that went on, it was only a matter of time before Eve sent them off on a mission together. Ezekiel was excited, but Flynn was not. Ezekiel wasn't a fool. He knew Flynn didn't like him, whatsoever. Ezekiel wouldn't admit his own feelings for the older man, he'd take those to the grave. And he tried his best not to be bothered by the fact that by all accounts, Flynn disliked him strongly, and only tolerated him. Possibly even hated him. Which, despite how he wanted to pretend, hurt. But he'd brought that upon himself, it was entirely his own doing. And it was better than way, that was how things had to be.
But this excursion should prove to be fun, at the very least, engaging. The clippings book sent them looking for a tiny island that nobody had come back from, and the more people that didn't come back, the more people that went.
Flynn and Ezekiel headed to the small Florida port town most of the reports had been coming in from, and had gathered information from the friends of the people that had left. They all said the island was tiny, not big enough to build anything of substance. It became clear that they would have to just go to the island themselves, and instantly disagreed on how to get there.
"There's at least one cave opening on that island big enough for Jenkins to program for us!" Flynn protested, as they headed down the docks of the port.
"Oh, come on, give the guy a break. Besides, are you really going to tell me you wouldn't like a little boat ride through the keys on a day like this?" Ezekiel proclaimed.
"Not one on a stolen boat!" Flynn hissed.
"We'll give it back! It's for a good cause, and all that. C'mon, loosen up, it'll be fun!" Ezekiel said, and then strolled right up onto a small fishing boat that appeared empty. Flynn helplessly looked around the docks for a few minutes, hesitating, before he huffed and followed the younger Librarian, muttering something about just how loose he could be.
A few moments of unanchoring and hotwiring later, and Ezekiel was behind the wheel, his chest puffed up in self importance as he pulled the ship out into the harbor.
"How do you even know how to sail?" Flynn asked incredulously, standing behind him.
"I have developed a basic affinity for any vehicle I can steal. I once stole a tank." Ezekiel said proudly. Flynn stared at him, more impressed than anything else. Which made Ezekiel flush slightly, but he didn't know why. Eve would have shaken her head, Cassandra would have frowned, Jake would have made one of his weird noises and screwed up his face. But Flynn's usual annoyance fell away into genuine interest, and it was something Ezekiel wasn't used to from his companions.
"Wait, really? How?"
"Well…."
The boat ride was surprisingly amicable, as they delved down into retelling different stories of their various escapades. Flynn finally told him about the time he'd fought Dracula, Ezekiel told him about when he'd broken into Fort Knox, at one point using a candy bar in the heist. Flynn had actually laughed, at that part, and it did something to Ezekiel's stomach. Once you got away from the moral outrage, for a moment, Flynn seemed to enjoy his stories. Ezekiel was afraid to name why that made him happy.
They pulled the small fishing boat up onto the sand of the island, and tied the ropes around a jagged outcropping of rocks.
"I think that's the best we can do." Flynn said, frowning at it.
"If the tide takes it away i'm sure the Library can reimburse the chap." Ezekiel said, shrugging and turning towards the tree line. The island was so small he could see to either side the turn of it.
"All those people must be dead, there's no way they've been on this tiny island for weeks. And where are the other boats? Maybe people just say they're coming here, and run away." Ezekiel ponded, gesturing at the empty beach.
"Why would they lie and just leave? They left family and friends behind with no explanation, they had no reason to go according to them, it doesn't make sense...maybe we're dealing with some form of siren…" Flynn countered, squinting out at the water.
"Trust me, mate. People leave. People lie to you, and then get in a boat or a car and go away, never to come back. It's just what people do." Ezekiel informed him, with a bitter edge to his tone. Flynn turned to look at him, raising an eyebrow.
"Is that what someone did to you?" He asked, not beating around the bush. Ezekiel began to walk towards the trees, not looking at him.
"What are sirens like?" He asked, deflecting away from the question. Flynn didn't pursue it. Instead, he carried on to explain the different times to water beings.
They walked for a while, through thick tropical plants and trees, until they came to strange, perfectly circular pool in the center of the clearing, covered in pads and beautiful flowers. The water was dark and green, shimmering underneath the purple and pink flowers that floated over the surface. Something about the flowers seemed strange, as if they were bleeding purple liquid, which mixed uneasily with the dark green water, creating a marbling effect. The purple substance glowed slightly, in veins that spread out into the cyanic, tranquil pool. In the center of the pool was a small island in itself, a small raised circle of grass and moss, framed in ferns that dipped over the water. The tops of the ferns that touched the water's edge where shriveled and dead.
"Get back!" Flynn cried, but it was too late. They had both inadvertently stepped into the pool's edge, having stumbled over the edge of the bluffed ground in their attempt to free themselves of the bushes. Both of them couldn't seem to move, they didn't want to, the second the water washed over their feet. Ezekiel frowned down at himself, as the world turned hazy, golden, the air seemed sweeter, hotter, and the light seemed brighter. Ezekiel blinked as the colors of everything seemed to become more saturated, as everything blurred slightly and grew more vivid. It was absolutely beautiful. He felt an undeniable sense of peace work it's way into him, every muscle relaxing slowly. The feeling worked it's way up his legs, over his torso, and his neck lulled slightly as he spread over his whole body. What a wonderful place this was. Flynn swayed slightly. Then Ezekiel realized, from a sense deep in his mind, that something in this place was very wrong. He attempted to stiffen himself up, balling his hands into fists and blinking, trying to fight away the warm relaxation that beckoned him. He tried to move backwards, out of the water, but he could not. He turned his head to see Flynn was also rigid, arms outstretched as if trying to regain his balance, glancing all around with that sharp gaze of his.
"What's happening?" Ezekiel asked.
"A lotus pool! This far West?" Flynn exclaimed, in a moment of observational confusion, before snapping back into his panic. Then he looked at Ezekiel, and his face was part fear, part bussiness.
"What the hell is a lotus? Isn't that a casino?" Ezekiel exclaimed, slightly alarmed by his inability to pull his feet up from the glowing water. Flynn squinted at him.
"Haven't you read the Odyssey? Homerr? The Iliad?" He asked. Ezekiel shook his head. Flynn rolled his eyes, turning to look all around the edge of the pool. "Jake was right, you're the most illiterate Librarian there ever was."
Ezekiel felt the relaxing feeling pull at him more, beckoning. He clenched his jaw against it, trying to focus on Flynn.
"Can we stop talking about my lack of schema and focus? What's happening? How do we get out?" Ezekiel exclaimed. Flynn trembled slightly, head whipping back and forth, and then back and forth, as he thought a mile a minute.
"The Lotus nectar is a magical drug, it drains people of the will to live, feeds off of their desire and their passion and energy, turning them into brainless, apathetic shells. A pool like this is like a trap, concentrating the nectar into the water so people are trapped on contact, and can only move forward, not back, but the deeper in the more the magic works until they fall asleep in the water." Flynn rapidly explained.
"Doesn't that mean, like, drowning?" Ezekiel exclaimed, looking down at the dark marbled water, suddenly envisioning skeletons and half decomposed bodies rotting at the bottom of the pool.
"Obviously. No wonder nobody comes back." Flynn replied, grimacing himself at the thought of the rotting flesh particles floating around their ankles.
"How do we get out? I don't know about you, but of all the ways i've thought about going out, becoming magical flower fertilizer is not on the top ten list! It's not even on the list!" Ezekiel hissed, in increasing panic. Flynn thought for a moment, before he snapped his fingers and started to desperately pat himself down, searching his pockets.
"They saved their shipmates that ate the lotus flowers by forcing them away from the island, if we call the others, they can come and pull us out!" Flynn exclaimed. Ezekiel gave him an exasperated look.
"There's no fucking service here, dude, trust me, I was trying to check instagram earlier." Ezekiel told him.
"No average mobile service, maybe, but I have a magically enhanced satellite phone- aha!" Flynn exclaimed in triumph, ripping a large plastic phone from his pocket. But the jacket caught on the bulking device, and it spun out of his sweaty palms, and the two men watched in horror as it plopped into the water and sank beneath. There was a heavy beat of silence.
"Great going, genius. Now we're going to become lotus food." Ezekiel snapped, throwing his arms up. They felt heavier than usual.
"Oh, now i'm a genius! You're the only who just wanted to come out here, on a stolen boat, unprepared!" Flynn exclaimed angrily. Ezekiel felt heat rise up in him.
"I never said that! You're the one who charged in unprepared, I just wanted to get us here on a boat instead of jumping the gun through a damned cave opening! That could have gone even worse, you get off on going through the door and not knowing what the fuck's going to happen, don't pin this on me just because you hate my guts!" He shouted. The water began to ripple, and grow hot around his ankles.
"I don't get off on - well I - don't say I hate you, you have no idea what goes on inside my head, i'm nothing but more tolerant than I should be when you're the one who gets off on pushing my buttons! Don't think I haven't noticed!" Flynn shouted back, and Ezekiel's anger began to fade as his attention turned to the water, which was starting to churn, as if it had a current, and was so hot he felt it was near the point of burning his ankles. He stared down as the purple light of the lotus nectar started to fade.
"You think you're so good, that you've got everyone fooled, they keep telling me it's all an act and I know that, but you need to start acting like a real Librarian and-" Flynn was still shouting, but Ezekiel paid his words no mind, waving a hand.
"Flynn, stop." He said, staring down as the water kept heating up.
"No, you always-" Flynn kept going, classically tunnel visioned into his rant. Ezekiel whipped to make eye contact with him, and jerked his head down at the water. Flynn stopped, then looked down, attention flipping over to his surroundings once again. His eyes widened.
"Dual current!" He exclaimed.
"The magic drains desire-" Ezekiel said.
"-and passion, energy. The more we give into that instead of the apathy, the less it can maintain itself, it become unstable. The pool…" Flynn turned to stare at the small outcropping of grass.
"We've gotta get over there, we've got to get out of the water." Flynn instructed.
"But aren't we not supposed to go deeper?"
"We have no choice. I think if we can get heated ourselves enough, the pool will dissipate, but if we try to pull it off while we're in the water, we'll get boiled alive. Is being Thief-Librarian soup on your list of good ways to die?" Flynn asked, gesturing towards the grass circle. Ezekiel sagged his shoulders for a moment, and then steeled himself.
"Lead the way." Ezekiel said to Flynn. Flynn clenched his jaw, turning towards the middle of the pool.
"If we get pissed while we try and get there, it should help." Flynn said, as he started to wade forward.
"You've never respected what I bring to this team!" Ezekiel shouted as he followed, trying to stay tense and trying to focus on his endless well of suppressed emotions, instead of the pull of the nectar. It seemed with every stride, the effect doubled, and his knees threatened to give out. He felt like he was drunk, and the world started to blur.
"Of course I didn't at first! I thought you were nothing but a selfish thief who had no respect for the value and beauty of the world!" Flynn called back. Ezekiel focused on that, on the man in front of him. As the world started to blur, he forced himself to wade deeper, a heady and lulling sensation overtaking him. He fought against it as hard as he could, letting the heat in his chest burn at it from the inside out. The water was up to his waist, but Flynn was already at the outcropping, dragging himself into the grass. Ezekiel pushed forward, and started to falter. But then he snapped to stand straight again, reaching to grab the edge of the dry soil.
"You have no idea what I really value!" Ezekiel snarled, voice half twisted in anger, half twisted in effort as he struggled to pull himself out. Flynn grabbed at his arms and gave him a pull, and they rolled onto the outcropping together, gasping in breath, as the sensation calmed slightly.
"Because you keep it that way. It's infuriating. You've got so much and you keep it hidden and it's like torture to me!" Flynn gasped out. "The others just put up with it but I can't!"
Ezekiel turned to stare at him, trying to blink away the haze in his eyes. "Why? Why does it matter so much, why don't you just leave it alone!" He huffed, furrowing his brow at the other man. Flynn dragged himself into a sitting position, and Ezekiel did the same.
"Because i'm a Librarian, I can't leave things alone! Because you matter! The Library chose you and you won't let anybody see why!" Flynn exclaimed. Ezekiel's emotions were all mixed up, and he didn't know how to respond to that. He just shook his head, and turned to watch the water churn around them. It was working, but not enough.
"Why do I still want to fall asleep? Why is this still happening?" Ezekiel asked in confusion. He felt the pull still, and it was growing stronger by the second. As if the magic was fighting back.
"We came in contact with the nectar, our bodies absorbed it. The magic won't stop unless we're far enough way, or unless the pool is destroyed. Even if we don't drown, we'll fall into a magic coma here forever." Flynn explained.
"How do we destroy it?" Ezekiel asked, not enjoying the idea of being catatonic forever in the caribbean. Although, some people would love that idea.
"Have to keep giving into energy and emotions instead. But it's kinda hard to get mad, I really…." Flynn huffed, turning to look at Ezekiel with brutal, exhausted honesty.
"I really don't hate you. I mean, I kinda did, at the start, but I don't anymore." Flynn admitted. Ezekiel stared at him, feeling a terrible trembling of his relieved heart. He let his eyes move from Flynn's face, to the water.
"You said desire and emotions, right?" He asked. Flynn nodded.
"Desire to live, to be, desire to hate, to fight, to lo-" Flynn started to elaborate, but was cut off when Ezekiel's young and wanton lips crashed into his. The whole world stopped, and then began again. And Flynn was frozen in the shock of Ezekiel clutching at his soaked shirt and kissing him, kissing him with a tangible desperation. It seemed forever in a moment as his mind tried to process this. After the lack of movement or response, Ezekiel's desperate confidence dwindled into uncertain fear, and he pulled away, ready to apologize. But before the gap between their lips graced a mere millimeter, Flynn, much like a riptide, fell back only to crash back forward. It was Ezekiel's turn to be taken by surprise. But it was a happy shock, a relief, and then he sunk into it, hands slowly moving to wrap around Flynn, moving himself closer. Their skin was hot wherever it touched, and their lips felt like the surface of the sun. The water began to bubble all around them, disturbing the lotuses.
Ezekiel had kissed more than a few people in his lifetime, but this took the proverbial cake. Maybe it was the lotuses, the way the world was so hazy and vivid. Maybe it was because Flynn was older than him, older than most of the people Ezekiel had ever kissed, and he certainly seemed to know what he was doing. Maybe it was because Ezekiel actually cared this time.
It started slow, as their arms wound around each other. It picked up pace soon, once tentative mouths found a rhythm. Heartbeat against heartbeat, and soon Ezekiel found himself melting slightly, as one of Flynn's hands found it's way up to tug at his hair. Ezekiel broke the kiss to let his head follow, distracted by the sensation and the silent demand. He was in such a daze, it took him a moment to realize Flynn had a reason for that, and that realization only came when Flynn moved in to devote attention to his neck, kissing up the side of his pulse, open mouthed kisses, tongue joining in to spread heat over his already burning skin. Ezekiel felt like his spine had evaporated, and he let his body sink into every touch.
"I want you." He said, using the lack of a mouth on his to voice a breathy confession.
Flynn made a humming noise. "You can't have all of me, not yet, not here. Well, not here specifically now. Hypothetically we could in the future..." He informed him, kisses and tongue moving up the curve of his jaw. He wanted to kick himself - now really wasn't the time to ramble, Carson. You're about to make a big mistake or - an amazing fortunate decision...
Ezekiel let out a sigh and turned his head, to catch that mouth, pulling Flynn into a deeper kiss this time, one that was shorter in it's duration but doubled in it's passion. When they broke away, their eyes were locked together, only breaking away slightly to roam over the other. Like their gazes were in a dance, and it was one that could not know words.
"Why not? It's not my first time. Wait, is it yours?" Ezekiel asked, words soft and slightly slurred, as if everything between them, between the brilliant flowers was a secret.
"What? No. We don't have anything to be safe besides magic water, you idiot." Flynn huffed, with a smile spreading over his features. Ezekiel grinned too, a humorous grin. It wasn't even a real joke. Why he was so giddy, he did not know.
"Well, it is magical…" He said mockingly, even though he agreed with Flynn's logic now that he thought about it. He was a bit disappointed. Flynn just shook his head slightly, and reached to push Ezekiel's half soaked jacket off his shoulders. Ezekiel let him, shrugging it off, turning his head to watch it go. Flynn took that as an invitation, mouth moving to the other exposed part of his neck. While he busied his mouth over the skin of Ezekiel's throat, the older Librarian's hands moved to unbutton Ezekiel's shirt. Ezekiel was suddenly very glad he'd worn a button up today. Maybe, subconsciously, he'd known he was going to need easy access. The thought made him laugh lightly, causing Flynn to grin against his skin.
They continued to kiss as they moved back, until they found themselves laying side by side, arms tangled. Flynn had a fixation on Ezekiel's jawline, but Ezekiel had no complaints. He only moaned, eyes fluttering closed. Just before they did, however, he saw over the horizon of Flynn's cheekbone that the water was boiling rapidly now. Steam clouded the visibility around the entire circle of dry land, a column of purple steam rippling with what looked like green lightning. It cast a combination of shadow and contorting light over them. It was mesmerizing, The magical looking lightning, and it discharged up into the atmosphere.
Ezekiel was distracted from noticing this by Flynn's hands moving up under his shirt, running over his abdomen lightly, just light enough to make him shudder. His muscles seized up in trepidation at the sensation, before shakily letting loose, his body going lax. The older man mouthed from his jawline, to his neck, to the crescendo of his collarbone. Ezekiel made a slight gasping sound, and then tensed slightly, embarrassed.
"Hearing your appreciation," Flynn sad, and then paused to move his tongue along the taught underside of where his collarbone stretched up against his skin. "Would not be a bad idea, I assure you."
"Stroke your ego, you mean?" Ezekiel asked with a half assed huffed, smugness misguided by the pleasure warming him. Flynn only made a humming around in response. Then the older LIbrarian pulled back. He was half straddling Ezekiel's legs, awkwardly trying to keep his balance as he unbuttoned his own shirt. Ezekiel blinked away a slight haze, and took the hint. He, unfortunately wasn't wearing a button down. If he and Flynn where to go on more solo missions together, Ezekiel would have to start wearing them more often. The thought struck him, like a punch to the gut. The abstract yet particular idea that there was a future, and these actions would have consequences. What outcome would come, Ezekiel did not know. Insecurity whispered assurances of repetition, but instead of letting the neurons behind his eyes fire out of control, he pushed that all away. Such a distance, the future. At least, that was how it seemed, separated from the spin of the world by a whirling vortex of thick, suffocating purple haze. Steam pushed heat into the center of the outcropping. Or, perhaps, it was them pushing heat out. Either way, it rolled through the atmosphere like waves to a resonating beat. Like waves on a ramshackle sea.
"Are you alright?" Came a question. Always questions, coming out of that mouth. Ezekiel blinked up at Flynn, who had sat back a little on his knees. He looked concerned. Ezekiel realized he'd frozen in his thoughts, halfway through pulling his shirt over his head. Ezekiel shook his head, and finished the movement, arching his back up to finish the flexion. He dropped his shirt behind his head. Flynn looked down at him, looking if anything else more apprehensive.
"We really don't have to if you-" He started to say, but Ezekiel cut him off by bucking up his legs while reaching to pull him down. Flynn fell forward but caught himself, one hand against Ezekiel's bicep and the other against the ground next to the younger man's head. They were flush, bare chest to chest, Flynn now straddling him higher up. Ezekiel reached to his chin and coaxed his mouth downwards so they could meet. An impossible moment of heat and movement, and then breath again. Flynn, once he had surfaced, grinned down at him. He then raised an eyebrow, looking over Ezekiel's chest and stomach as he squeezed the hand cupping his arm.
"Huh. Not what I expected." He said. Let's just say Jones was just shy over the line of toned, but what he wore downplayed evidence of effort. Ezekiel just shook his head slightly in amazement. Always permanently distracted. Better to call him back in the right direction with action. Ezekiel slipped his hands up, pushing them to trail down Flynn's abdomen to meet the resistance of belt and pants. He moved over the trousers, and reached between Flynn's legs through the fabric. Only half dry, like his own. Flynn's eyes went wide, and his chapped lips parted slightly. Then he let himself fall slowly back down into Ezekiel. Laying on top of him, Flynn kissed him again as he snaked a hand down between him themselves, and returned the favor. It was Ezekiel's turn to gasp, squirming a bit. He spread his legs a little so he and Flynn had room to intertwine. Flynn took a moment to roll to the side a little, and made surprisingly quick work of his pressed pants. Then he straddled the younger librarian once more, and moved to kiss down Ezekiel's chest. All the while his callused hands undid the button and zipper of his red skinny jeans. Ezekiel did his best to assist by struggling to kick off his shoes. One went too far, and rolled away until it splashed into the violently boiling water.
Ezekiel paid it no mind, arching his back again. He dug his strong shoulders and heels into the ground, lifting one leg at a time so Flynn could pull the pants off and discard them. Obtrusive clothing gone, left both in respective boxers, they could crash back together again. Ezekiel moved into Flynn's mouth, reaching a tongue to beg along the line of their meeting lips. He couldn't remember the last time he'd gotten such raw enjoyment just from kissing someone. He blamed it on the literal magic in the air.
In this position Ezekiel could reach back up and finally slip his hands eagerly under the waistline of the man's boxers. His plaid boxers. Why would Ezekiel be surprised? Flynn gasped as Ezekiel wrapped his hand around him, but Ezekiel paused. He raised an eyebrow, and their lips broke to exchange a look.
"Not what I expected." Ezekiel commented, and gave the already hard length a slow stroke. Flynn's eyelids fluttered over the top of his indignant look. But no response could come, because soon Flynn's mouth was pressed back to his own, and his hands were plunging beneath the red horizon of Ezekiel's shorts. Ezekiel jolted, and they moved further against each other. He made a muffled groan, eyes rolling behind his lids. The unoccupied of Flynn's hands traveled up over his skin to rake through Ezekiel's hair, tugging on it slightly. Their kiss broke with the movement, and Flynn did more than kiss his neck this time. As the man's hand moved around his erection, his teeth grazed Ezekiel's pulse before pressing down, and holy shit he didn't know he'd be so into that. A spark of slight pain dissolving into pleasure. Ezekiel made another noise he would properly be embarrassed about, but couldn't find effort to give towards embarrassment.
Instead, he tightened his grip, twisting his hand as he sped up. This caused Flynn to falter in his own movements, forehead resting in the crook of Ezekiel's shoulder as he panted. The heat was sweltering, thick steam clouding even their own air in the center of the column. It collected on their skin as if they were in a sauna, rolling down off them. Ezekiel's hair was plastered to his forehead and his breath came heavy and wet. This only added to the headiness of his growing pleasure. Sparking through his body at every faltering stroke, the pleasant warmness burned up inside of him like nothing else. The heat flared with the rhythm they'd adopted, moving slowly against each other in an off kilter push and pull.
What more could Ezekiel expect - it became a competition. To see who could make the other moan louder, to see who could bring the other undone first. Ezekiel had a vague sense of just how loud he grew, which was very new to him. On the flip side, all of his attention was devoted to the body wrapped up in his, and all the places their superheated wet skin was touching. Alternating speeds and movement to throw Flynn off, switch it up to get him to fall apart. And boy, was it effective. The older LIbrarian curled his fingers into Ezekiel's hair, head curling into his shoulder and grip tightening. Ezekiel groaned at the feeling, grinning to himself in a smug glow. His grin widened when Flynn gasped, the return of that breath faltering into a raspy moan as the man on top of him tensed up, before shuddering and melting as he came between them. Not the greatest sensation, but Ezekiel was far too gone to care. In situations like these, everything felt good. Ezekiel radiated pride that he'd won, mixing in with the bodily pleasure to give it's own heightened elation. He should probably give Flynn a moment to recuperate. The man had a few years on him, after all.
This logic came easily through the haze, and he listened to it. But something else came to him, something less defined, and he found his head turning to press kisses to the side of the man's face. He pulled his out of Flynn's shorts as he did, and extracted the arm from between them so they could lay flush. All besides Flynn's hand, still down the front of his boxers, having gone still. Flynn breathed in and out slowly, and slowly moved his head so they were practically nose to nose. His pupils were blown wide. His focus narrowed in on Ezekiel again as he came down from that high, and the task at hand presented itself deliciously. Ezekiel found himself opening his mouth to say something, but the hand on his cock was moving again and all words were forgotten. A slight lapse in stimulation only served to cause a whole new wave of pleasure. It rose up, winding it's way around his core, and he bit his lip before letting himself relax into it. It was in itself like a battle, trying to keep his body from tensing, focusing on letting himself melt into the pleasure and Flynn instead. It was far better that way.
Finally, climax approached, and he couldn't help but arch up, pressing against Flynn and digging his nails into his shoulder. Flynn was keenly aware of his approaching orgasm, and bite down again lightly on his neck, tongue and teeth ensnaring his rapid pulse. Ezekiel made a noise something embarrassingly close to Flynn's name in whimpering form. Flynn's tongue laved over the flesh indents of his teeth as Ezekiel came with another embarrassing exclamative. And then they sagged, a jelly-boned panting heap of librarian. The first thing Ezekiel registered after fading from the blinding white of his orgasm was the heat had receded. His head turned, and he saw the steam dissipating, starting to clear. To reveal no water left in the pond at all. The lotus pads were boiled into soggy, dead mounds of slim.
Ezekiel let his head slowly turn back to Flynn. The older Librarian had a supremely blissed out expression. The most relaxed Ezekiel had ever seen him look. Ezekiel realized that what they'd just done, it was the first time he'd ever experienced Flynn so focused on one thing. And it was all for him.
The pleasure ebbed from it's own curb of intensity, and reality set in. He was lying with flynn. Half naked. Covered in cum and condensation from an evil pond. And evil pond they'd defeated by rutting against each other like teenagers in the back of a car at night. That idea of consequences returned, and Ezekiel swallowed as an embarrassed flush graced him.
"Well." Flynn said, blinking at the naked thief as he came to his own realizations."Not how I envisioned this mission going, i'll say that." He said, voice a bit rough. He cleared his throat awkwardly. Ezekiel could feel the vibrations of the sound distinctly through where his shoulder met Flynn's chest.
Ezekiel felt doubt come upon him, just as it always did.
"I'm...sorry?" He found himself saying softly, suddenly feeling guilty, and ashamed. Since it seemed from that statement, Flynn had regret. He should have expected as much.
Flynn's eyes widened slightly. It first struck him that this was the first sincere apology he'd ever heard the thief utter. And it was the first time he'd ever seen him look not even a bit confidant - there was a slowly devastating fear reflecting back at him in Ezekiel's eyes, and he rushed like the riptide to push it away. That was not what he'd meant to imply.
He pressed forward and reached a hand to beckon Ezekiel into another kiss. This one was slow, gentle, and born of a whole new hesitant question. That idea of consequences and future rippled between them. Flynn pulled back, but only a little bit, so their foreheads were touching.
"Don't ever be sorry about this." He said, and his words brought another element into whatever they were together - a coolness, that soothed the rough inflamed edges and promised something more intoxicating than evil ponds and lotus flowers.