Surprisingly, the incident at the inn turned out to be a stroke of luck for Roxas and Axel.
Julia's aunt was shocked by the turn of events and while she could offer them little reward, she could and did get them supplies at local rates. That was a much better bargain then they could have gotten for themselves, but there was more. She was able to recommend them to a local noble who was looking for an escort for his son. The boy needed to go to university in far off Rivendale. Axel and Roxas were both very hazy on exactly what a university was but they understood the length of the trip perfectly well. It was well over a week's ride due west.
"Normally I wouldn't be hiring you." Squire Lurius told them, his brow furrowed in concern. Axel tilted his head to one side as Roxas took a drink of his beer. The squire had come to meet them at the inn. He was a very minor noble and didn't stand much on his dignity. "However, things are very unsettled at the moment and while my men are good they are not… practiced. Militia men, basically. You seem to have more experience?" He looked at them doubtfully. Roxas hid a smile as Axel answered.
"Oh, we've both been going with the men since we were, mm, fourteen?" The squire looked startled and Axel smiled. "Of course, we were mostly shooting crossbows at first. But I've been in a cavalry charge before."
"The Cleft deals with bandits frequently?" The squire asked, brushing back a bit of his blonde hair. He didn't sound disbelieving at all… more concerned. Axel shrugged as Roxas frowned.
"Off and on. Mostly corn people bandits trying to steal the horses, um, no offense." Axel said hastily and the squire laughed.
"None taken. You have beautiful horses. What breed are they?" Axel and the squire chatted about horses and bandits as Roxas vaguely wondered if he should shut Axel up. The corn people were ancestral enemies and telling them all about their weapons and how they beat off bandit attacks just didn't seem right. On the other hand, it wasn't like any of it was a secret and from the squire's questions and comments he already knew a lot about it.
"Will your son be bringing any servants?" Roxas asked, trying to bring the conversation back to their job. The noble blinked at him as though he'd forgotten Roxas was there.
"Oh, no. The university doesn't allow it. You, ah, don't know about that?" The squire regarded him dubiously and Roxas suddenly realized that the man must be assuming he was also a corn person. Or rather, a Vritan, as the corn people called themselves.
"I'm a Glisterheim. I was adopted as a baby and I've lived in the Cleft all my life." He said briskly, setting his hand on the table. The copper filigree sparkled in the firelight from the hearths. "Axel is my knife companion, sworn by the gods." The redhead grinned and lifted his hand, the copper flickering there as well.
"Oh." Squire Lurius said faintly then shook his head. "I should have realized from your accent. But I've never heard of such a thing." He sounded a bit bewildered and Roxas relented a touch.
"It was only because my parents lost their baby in a corn people raid. Bandits that were based out of a small town." He amplified as the squire frowned. The noble looked thoughtful for a moment then nodded.
"Shestal. I'd heard of that although I thought we ransomed back all the remaining villagers." He took a drink of his beer before speaking again. "They were all resettled down near the Glavareen border as part of the ransom." That didn't mean much to Axel and Roxas and he seemed to sense that, smiling faintly. "It was political. Your elders would understand. Well, I think you'll be perfect for this. I will pay you a gold star each to escort my son. Are you interested?"
"Are we!" Axel exclaimed and Roxas could only agree. A gold star was equivalent to fifty silvers. That was… Roxas had to think hard about it for a moment. A bit over seven silvers a day if they only took a week. That was very good although Roxas had to remind himself of how much they were spending to stay at inns and feed the horses. It probably wasn't out of line at all for a trustworthy man at arms.
"We definitely are." Roxas said firmly. "Will you pay us half up front and half at the end?" The squire laughed and shook his head.
"What would the point of that be? My son would have to carry the money and if you meant him ill, well…" He shrugged and Roxas winced, seeing why the noble was being so careful about whom he hired. He was right, they could just slit the boys' throat and leave him a ditch somewhere. "But Glisterheim from the Cleft are known for their honor, and the way you left all the money with Julia's family is as good a recommendation as I could hope for. Shake on it?" They sealed the bargain with a handshake. "He won't be ready for a few days. Would you accept the hospitality of my manor in the meantime?"
"We would be very grateful." Axel said with a smile. That was a very generous offer but Roxas was aware there was a bit more to it. Squire Lurius would probably use the time to get to know them better and pick their brains. But that seemed understandable now. If some circumstance of fate had forced Dagstyrr to send Roxas with a completely unfamiliar warrior, he would have done the same thing. "We've already paid for the night though." That was a bit of a problem. The squire shook his head.
"I'll make it right with the innkeeper. Go saddle your horses." Axel and Roxas went to tend to that as the squire had a quiet word with the innkeeper. When he came outside they were both ready to go. The squire handed them back half the money they'd given the innkeeper. "Sorry. That was all he was willing to return."
"Fair enough." Roxas was a bit surprised he'd gotten anything. Not that the inn was busy enough that they'd turned away someone else, but still. No one liked to give up money in hand. The squire mounted his own horse, a rather stumpy looking mare. It didn't take them long to reach the manor, which was only a short distance out of town. When they did, the two Glisterheim were both impressed.
"Nice." Axel said approvingly as he looked it over. Someone had clearly been working with a limited budget but good military instincts when he'd designed it. The walls were strong and the land around it was meticulously cleared of brush. The manor wouldn't stand against an army but it would be a tough target for bandits. The squire nodded.
"My grandfather was in the army, in his youth." The noble handed off his horse to a groom, and Axel and Roxas followed suit, although the blonde made a promise to himself to check the horses personally the next day. He was sure the manor staff was competent but you couldn't be too careful. The rooms they were shown to were quite nice, although Axel had to duck a bit to avoid hitting his head on the beams.
"This place was built for dwarves." He complained and Roxas grinned, poking him in the side.
"Now you know how I've felt my whole life! The Cleft was built for giants." He said playfully and Axel laughed, tossing back his head.
"Better giants than midgets – oh look, a feather bed!" Axel admired the mattress as Roxas sat down on it. "Is that as good as it looks?"
"Better." Roxas lay down on the bed, luxuriating in the feeling. His family probably could have afforded beds like this if they'd wanted them, but it wasn't the Glisterheim way. They preferred to invest in steel and better horses. Still, it was very nice. "Come see!" Axel grinned and pulled off his armor before flopping down beside him.
"You're right, best doss I've had in my life. Hey, get that armor off." Roxas yelped as Axel poked him then reluctantly slid to his feet, working off his armor and carefully hanging it up in the closet. He pulled off his boots, noticing that Axel had already kicked his off. Then he smiled as he saw the redhead was too tall for the bed. His feet were hanging off the end until he curled up his legs a bit.
Between the moonlight and the candles the room was well lit and Roxas paused a moment, just looking at his best friend. The candlelight glowed on warm skin as Axel dreamily looked up at the ceiling. He looked wonderful and Roxas felt himself blush as he contemplated something… unthinkable.
Do I dare? But what if the gods do mean we should be together? What if he feels the same? But what if he doesn't? Caught in an agony of indecision Roxas didn't notice when Axel lifted his head and looked at him curiously. But the gods bound us together so even if he doesn't it can't ruin our friendship. I think. I hope? Roxas gasped in surprise as warm arms suddenly enfolded him and he found his face against Axel's chest. The redhead smelled like leather, horses and sweat.
"Hey, what's wrong?" Axel murmured and Roxas looked up to meet concerned green eyes. "You've been acting a little weird since the gods blessed us. Is everything okay?" A large hand slowly rubbed his back and Roxas swallowed at the feeling.
"Axel, I –" He choked out before suddenly standing on tiptoes and mashing his lips against the redhead's. Their noses banged together and Axel flinched away, startled. The redhead let go of him and Roxas flushed, hideously embarrassed. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have – I'll go ask for another room –" He was groping for the doorknob when a large hand landed on his shoulder.
"Hey, don't do that." Axel sounded almost – excited? Roxas turned to look at his friend, dreading what he would see and was shocked to see that he was grinning. Then a dark suspicion came to him. Did Axel think this was a joke? "Hey, do you like me?"
"I, uh, what?" Roxas blinked, feeling muddled and confused. "Of course I – oh. Yes." Axel meant like in a romantic fashion but the redhead didn't seem upset. Quite the reverse and Roxas gasped as his best friend hugged him again.
"I've loved you for years." Axel murmured and Roxas felt his heart seizing up. Was he serious? "But when you went to court Sigfrida I thought there was no way…" Roxas suddenly felt like cursing himself. Of course Axel would have assumed that meant he was interested in girls! He'd told the redhead he'd only done it to please his parents, but still. "Although I have to say, that was the worst kiss ever. My nose hurts."
"You snail!" Roxas shoved his friend before relaxing into his arms with a smile. "We'll just have to try again." He was sure they would both get better with practice. "Once we get our nightshifts on." He said, feeling a flutter of anticipation and fear. What would this be like? He had no idea. Axel nodded and Roxas thought he could catch a bit of apprehension in his expression.
"Right." They quickly changed and Roxas found the soft fabric of the shift comforting. Although it wouldn't impede them at all if they chose to do more. "Um, Roxas." Roxas looked up and saw Axel swallow. "I – I have no idea what to do. I mean, past kissing."
"Um." Roxas blinked as he realized he had no idea either. His parents had explained how it was between a man and a woman, of course, but they hadn't gotten into this. So all his information came from one of the older boys… the same one who'd told him that if a girl put your thing in her mouth she'd have a baby out her ear. Somehow, he didn't think it was reliable. "I don't know either." He admitted and Axel laughed before hugging him again.
"Hopeless! All I know is what I, um, overheard my nana telling my sister." That perked up Roxas' interest. What secrets did women teach their girls? He'd never had a sister so he had no idea. "And that was just that if a man wants to come in the backdoor don't let him, ever."
"Oh." Roxas swallowed nervously. That sounded a bit daunting. Was this going to be painful? Axel took his hand and gently tugged him over to the bed.
"Let's just kiss and touch and see what happens. Hey?" He murmured softly and Roxas looked up to meet bright green eyes, nodding. "Whatever happens, I won't hurt you."
"Hmph! Well, I promise not to hurt you either." Roxas said, almost grumpily. Was Axel assuming he would be the one putting it in? The blonde wasn't sure he was going to go along with that. Axel blinked then grinned.
"Hurt me? Aw, but you're so tiny! A flea could hurt me – AWK!" Roxas suddenly tackled the redhead onto the bed, making him squawk and sending a few feathers flying. They wrestled furiously for a few moments but Axel's greater strength quickly came into play. To his disgruntlement, Roxas found himself pinned to the bed, panting as Axel grinned down at him. "See? Hmm…" Axel nuzzled him and Roxas closed his eyes for a moment as the redhead kissed his throat.
"Mmm." Roxas squirmed until Axel let go of his wrists and reached up to run his hands through thick red hair. The spikes felt good in his hands, strong and a little rough. Axel kissed him then and it was better, so much better than last time. Axel seemed to know how to kiss. "Who have you been kissing before me?" He had to ask. Was it a girl? Axel grinned.
"No one." Roxas eyed him suspiciously until Axel explained. "I practiced on my sister's dolls when – hey! Don't laugh at me." Axel silenced him with another kiss and the blonde melted into it. Axel's hand slid under his nightshift, exploring his chest and teasing his nipples. Roxas moaned softly at the feel of strong, callused hands touching him in the way he'd desired for so long.
"Axel." He whispered his friend's name, sliding his hands over his chest as he looked up into bright green eyes, so wide and bright. Axel looked so pleased and Roxas smiled, feeling the play of muscles under warm skin. He was wondering the same thing. Oh, thank the gods… Their lips met for another kiss and it was deeper, more intense. Roxas felt himself melting into the pleasure and decided to just go where this took him.
Soft gasps and primal sounds of pleasure filled the air as the two boys touched each other and found what pleased each other. They were too afraid of hurting each other to do more than touch, but that was more than enough. The emotions were even more intense than the pleasure of the body and for the first time in his life, Roxas felt like his heart was whole.
"Roxas." Axel's breath was warm in his ear and Roxas gasped as he felt a coiling warmth in his belly, the beginnings of his orgasm. "I love you."
"I love you too." Roxas whispered back, then cried out as Axel squeezed him. He found his release then, in a moment more potent than any other orgasm he'd had in his life. Not that he'd had very many… and they'd mostly involved him touching himself. This was Axel and it was incomparably better than lonely dreams and fantasies. Axel's voice rose in a counterpoint to his own as the redhead released, his come wetting Roxas' hand and his own nightshift. The two boys lay together for a long moment, cuddling and looking into each other's eyes until –
"Oh… ick." Axel looked down at himself in faint dismay as he realized how messy his nightshift was. Roxas winced as he shifted and realized he was just as badly off.
"Let's just sleep naked." Roxas suggested and Axel grinned, sitting up to strip away his nightshift.
"Let's!" They used the dirty nightshifts to clean up the rest of the mess and Roxas reflected ruefully that whoever did the laundry here probably wasn't going to be too fond of them. But it couldn't be helped. They would have to figure out how to do this better… but how? In the Cleft he would probably have finally gathered his courage and approached Djalfi. The priest probably knew nothing about it himself, but he could have pointed Roxas in the direction of a knowledgeable and trustworthy man who inclined that way. Everyone confided in the priests, sooner or later. But who could help them among the corn people?
"Oh well." Roxas couldn't find it in himself to care about that right now. His heart was singing and he felt beyond blissful. Axel loved him. It was everything he'd hoped for, a dream come true. They were going to be partners forever. Roxas said a brief prayer of thanks to Ravana, Freka and Hetanya. He didn't care that the Court of Unr didn't believe in Hetanya.
The gods were the gods, and he had a feeling they were looking out for him.
