Disclaimer: Do not own the characters... do own the bad writing. =p
ruakichan asked: Since your backlog is empty... Noel/Hope request: I've been craving some skinship, so how about something with that, and can we try for a high fantasy setting since we don't see too many of those? Otherwise, the setting really doesn't matter. =w=b
Fantasy AU (?). Probably OOC. Lots of touching.
"Take off your clothes." Hope felt his throat constrict at the command, no longer certain if this was the path he wanted to take. It would make him stronger, free him from the shackles of his handlers but at the risk of being permanently bonded to someone he had only just met. The young man had already taken off his shirt, pants and weapons, wearing only the accessories that proved his status as a warrior-mage amongst his tribe, the rest of his body left bare, exposed only by candlelight. "I can't do anything to help you if you don't do it." The brunet motioned to the mass of pillows laid out on the tent floor, covered by a heavy blanket as a makeshift bed. There would be just enough room for the both of them.
"How do I know this is even going to work?" The silver haired mage needed proof. Sure, he had seen and felt Noel's power earlier but what if it was a fluke or fake? What if this was all just an excuse to take advantage of his naïve belief that this could even be done?
Instead of answering, the younger man stepped in front of Hope, lifting the sleeve of his robe and folding the cloth above his wrist, exposing the brand bestowed to him by the Maker, the very mark that revealed him as a mage to the Order and forced his family to send him away.
His tan calloused hand hovered over the brand, fanning out fingers before pressing against it. Hope could feel the skin pulse against Noel's touch, the mark warming as it began to resonate with the other man's magic. All the teachings against touch were screaming through his brain.
Mages did not touch as a rule set down by the Order. It was far too easy to transfer power and lose themselves to passion, catastrophe and decimation often following.
"Relax. I can see what you're thinking. It won't happen." Noel assured, lifting his palm to let his fingers trace the image, a soft glow emanating from his fingertips before he pulled his hand away. "Breathe." Hope inhaled, not realizing that he had been holding his breath during the whole process. He felt lightheaded. Just what exactly had Noel done to him? "Look."
Hope glanced down at the pale flesh of his arm; the brand that had ruled his life for so long was gone, missing as though it had never been there. "How did you?" He gasped. It was impossible. There was no way to actually remove it without the same power as god himself.
"It's not gone, just hidden." Noel confessed as Hope reached out with his own power to confirm its presence under his skin. Looking up into dark blue eyes Hope couldn't help but feel gratitude and a connection, the same one that led him to trust Noel enough to perform this forbidden augmentation of power with the younger man in the first place.
"I still want to do this." Hope unclasped the hook around his neck and shrugged off his robe, letting it drop to the ground to pool at his feet before stepping over to the blanket. "I just think I might need some help getting undressed." He wasn't trying to seduce the younger man… he just genuinely didn't think he had the courage to take off his clothes in front of another person. Of course the rakish grin he received right after he said it made him wince as the other man strode over to where he now stood and motioned him to kneel before joining him.
"If it helps any I can talk you through the process." That same hand from before came up again, joined by it's partner as Noel undid the buttons from Hope's tunic, taking his time to open it before sliding the flowing garment off of Hope's shoulders.
"I'm quite familiar with what needs to happen. Let's just get this over with." His voice caught. It felt strange, being exposed like this to another man. Had Noel not already been naked, Hope was certain he would have protested in spite of knowing the necessity of skin-to-skin in order to perform this ritual.
"Understood. Just keep in mind that once we've started you can't back out." Noel reached just past Hope to grab a small bowl holding an iridescent blue liquid and placing it off to the side before dipping each one of his fingers into it. The liquid instantly reacted to Noel's touch, sticking to his fingertips so that he could mark Hope's body. "It's all or nothing Hope."
Hope had to remind himself to breathe again, his nerves at war with his actions. It was courteous of Noel to give him an out but he had already made up his mind the moment he saw how powerful Noel was in battle. To have that kind of strength and speed to cast spells, it was a freedom he'd never dreamed of having before this and without it he'd wind up having to go back to the Order who use him for their own machinations.
Leveling his green eyes with Noel's blue he made his stance clear. "I won't ask again. Do it."
"I like how you pretend you're asking." Noel smirked, liquid coated fingertips coming up to hover just over Hope's temple. He was waiting. Why was he waiting?
The arch of Noel's eyebrow reminded Hope instantly of the issue; each touch needed to be reciprocated by Hope. It was the only way to connect their magic and make the rune writing needed for the augmentation to work. Hope didn't need the catalyst that Noel did; Hope needed only to trace and call forth his magic against the script Noel already had hidden along his body.
Steeling himself he lifted his opposing hand and moved his index and middle finger to match the same position on Noel's head, setting the finger pads down and concentrating on feeling the magic resting just beneath the brunets skin. His breath caught as Noel mimicked the movement, fingertips waiting against his head, the liquid feeling cool against his flesh.
Closing his eyes, Hope focused on the man before him, reaching in for his power, looking for where to begin. Slowly he pressed in, tracing the line down to Noel's cheek, beneath the socket of his eye before curving back out across the jaw line, and weaving in front of his ear. The writing was mostly in cursive, leaving little need for Hope to lift his hand to continue the exchange. Noel moved along with him, mirroring the movements, liquid trailing where he marked the older mage, leaving a blue sheen that glowed before embedding itself beneath Hope's skin, a light burn accompanied the sensation of magic he could feel flowing into him.
The bond allowed for the two of them to be one for the moment, Noel's battle worn hands greatly contrasting Hope's own soft pampered ones as they traversed his body, in essence assisting Hope in touching himself and looping the magic back around.
There would be no need to repeat the act on his other side as the liquid that Noel was painting into his flesh created a bond that allowed Noel's rune script to temporarily expose itself under Hope's touches and copy over.
Down the neck towards the clavicle, there was a brief pause as both lifted their fingers from the other and moved to the next set of phrases that needed to be set into Hope's flesh. "You're forgetting to breathe again." Noel chuckled and Hope could feel that the brunet had slid closer to him, the heat from his body nearly smothering Hope from its proximity in spite of the burning touch that stuck to his skin.
"Help me take off my pants. I don't want to stop again." Not one to be deterred, Hope stood up, shyly wrapping his hands around his elbows while Noel grabbed the waistband of Hope's pants and underclothes and slid them down off his legs, leaving him bare to the other man's eyes. "Please don't look at me like that." Hope could feel blood rush to his face; the heated blue orbs taking him in were far more intimate than he knew how to deal with. It was too late now though to stop; backing out would only cause a magical backlash at this point and they didn't have time to spare.
"My apologies." Noel held out his hand to guide Hope back down to his knees, dipping his hand again in the bowl before bringing it to Hope's shoulder. This time the script traveled down the arm, forcing both men to switch fingers to wind around back up and towards the shoulder blade, forcing Noel to scoot closer, too close for Hope as the scent of the taller man began to creep into his nose, a masked musk covered by scented oils that he probably used after bathing. It was becoming harder to concentrate as they continued their outline along each other's bodies.
Another stop, this time where his spine met his waist. Those eyes were watching him again and he could swear Noel was practically beaming with excitement as the line curved, over the hipbone and dangerously close to his groin. "Just a little further. We're almost done." Noel assured as he immersed his fingers again, following Hope's lead down his thigh towards the knee. The writing was becoming more intricate, more twists, curves and lines that carried into one another. "Do you trust me?" Noel asked just as they paused again though Hope wasn't quite sure how to answer that question.
He didn't need to though. Taking the initiative, Noel wrapped his other arm around Hope and pushed him onto his back, pulling Hope's leg up so that he could continue the writing as he leaned over the rest of him.
The final character of rune script ended just under the buttock and Hope couldn't help but sigh in relief once Noel removed his fingers from him even though the younger man had yet to get off his hands and knees over him. "Is that it? I didn't feel any more writing." Hope found himself asking, though he was panting from the excess of magic now throbbing through his body. If this was not sufficient, he was curious as to how much more he could gain from this experience. It was positively breathtaking.
"Not just yet." Taking each finger into his mouth, Noel sucked the remaining liquid off, coating his tongue with the mixture before wrapping his hands into Hope's hair and leaning in to capture the older mage's mouth, working full lips against his own, urging them open to slide his tongue inside and twisting it against Hope's. The only thing the silver haired man could focus on was the throbbing of power between them, white and hot as Noel finally disengaged and smiled, rubbing his nose against Hope's.
"That's-" Hope couldn't keep the reprimand from his voice though he didn't take any action to stop Noel from continuing to nuzzle his face against Hope, the warrior-mages body still firmly molded against him. "Not at all part of the ritual." He could feel the curve of Noel's mouth against his neck as he answered.
"I've always been a fan of improvisation."
Fin.
