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"Xas!" She agrees, before using the last of her wits to direct his head to her breast. "Feed? Qualla ?" She begs. Her body shocks for a moment at the chill feel of his fangs slipping into the skin above her nipple. He withdraws them almost immediately, but sucks so hard at the wound, her purple-gray skin will surely b... |
A muffled cry wrenches from his mouth as her blood fills his mouth and her body pulses around his. He thrusts hard into her again and again, fucking her through her own orgasm before following her over the precipice. He draws back after a moment, licking the wounds closed before pulling her back to the pillows with him... |
"Fuck." He whispers into the pre-dawn light, drawing an arm around her to hold her close. |
Tav rests her head on his shoulder, limp and sated. She can’t wait to admire her bruises. |
Their camp outside the Emerald Grove had been transformed into a combination Tiefling Refugee-Emerald Grove Druid party. The libations flowed, everyone seemed relaxed and happy. Shadowheart and Tav clung to each other in mild terror, as thankful Tieflings, then thankful Druids take turns praising them for defeating the... |
Gale and Wyll, of course, take it all as their due. They move through the crowd with ease, stopping to share stories or clasp a shoulder. Lae’zel’s stern countenance scares away all but the bravest, or drunkest, well-wisher. Astarion had vanished entirely some hours before. Tav hadn’t seen him since Halsin had told the... |
The group had initially disbanded to mingle after the talk with Halsin, but the Master Druid had caught Tav by the sleeve and held her back. He made it obvious he wanted them to journey to Moonrise Towers through the underdark as soon as possible. He expressed doubt that the Githyanki creche would hold any help for the... |
It was at that point Shadowheart had rescued her from Halsin, as Tav found it difficult to politely disengage from surface dwellers in conversation. Why could Lae’zel get away with being blunt without impacting the reputation of the entire Githyanki people? Not fair. Tav knew Shadowheart had rescued her from pure selfi... |
At some point during the evening, Wyll had stolen Shadowheart away from her for a dance. Tav missed Astarion, but enjoyed watching her friends dance from her seat by the fire. She was just wondering if they would teach her when Gale sat beside her. |
"I bet you want to get away from all this," The wizard guessed, "Wyll could only rescue one of you, after all." |
"You’re very right," Tav laughed. "This is hell." |
"Well then, m’lady, allow my humble self to be of service," Gale offered with a small bow. "Wait for my signal, then duck out of camp. No one will see you leave." |
"What signal?" Tav asked, curious. |
"Oh, you’ll know it." Gale answered with a wink and a mysterious smile before moving away from her. |
Another Tiefling came up to thank her and Gale was lost to sight. |
Wyll spun Shadowheart around a few more turns. It looked fun to dance. Damnit, where was Astarion? |
Just then, the sky lit up with a wild spray of colour. Applause followed, then another spray. Tav saw Gale casting and realized that was her cue. She backed away a few steps, making sure everyone’s attention was on either the Wizard or his magic show before dropping a darkness spell on her back and walking off into the... |
Once she found the rock she had lounged on with Shadowheart the day before, she allowed the darkness spell to dissipate. Safely alone, at last. |
She had lost track of time, staring up at the stars from her rocky perch, when Astarion suddenly crashed out of the brush near her. His shirt was torn, there was an awful clawed gouge in one arm and he was as blood-splattered as she had ever seen. |
"Oh, there you are!" He giggled, wavering on his feet. "My... friend." |
This was out of character for him. He seemed... |
"Are you drunk?" |
"I have drunk," He explained, "Not alcohol, of course. A bear. He took a little of my blood. I took all of his." |
"I hope it wasn’t one of Halsin’s friends." Tav said, shaking her head with a smile. |
"I hope it was." Astarion returned, frowning the moment Halsin’s name dropped from Tav’s lips. |
"Well," What in the world was he thinking, looking to kill Halsin’s friends? Perhaps a conversation for another time, when he wasn’t blood-drunk. "You seem happy. No need to drink from me tonight, then?" |
Astarion looked truly disgusted. She must have said the wrong thing. |
"You’re comparing plonk to vintage wine ." Oh, that was almost sweet. "You can make merry with either, but they are not the same." |
"But, Cazador fed me rats and bugs." He continued with hate dripping from his voice. Cazador must be the Vampire Master who turned him. It seems Bear-Drunk Astarion was finally open to talking to her more about his life as a vampire spawn. "And when you’re used to drinking from a sewer, even plonk is a marked improve... |
"Flies?" She whispered in horror. That’s no meal for anyone not a frog. "What did you do to deserve that?" |
"I existed." Astarion spat. "That was enough for him. He reveled in having power over me. Because those with power can do whatever the hell they want. " |
Tav had a feeling they were talking about more than just Astarion’s life - unlife - under Cazador. He had specifically sought out a bear, of all things, to fight and eat. Why a bear? |
"You’re free now, though." She reminded him, "That’s what matters." |
"Is it?" He asked softly. He may not be alcohol drunk, but he was still flashing through every emotion a drunk could experience at the same breakneck speed. She couldn’t keep up with him when he was sober , this was like walking a rope over a canyon. "What good is freedom if I’m always watching the shadows? No. I’ll ... |
"Careful," She warned, wryly. "There are heroes about. I’d hate for them to get the right idea about you." |
"Let them," Astarion scoffed. "Heroes are half the damn problem! Fools that believe in right and wrong - good and evil. Heroes didn’t save me from Cazador: mind flayers did." |
"They may have started it," Tav offered, "But we’ll finish it. We’ll get these tadpoles out of our heads, then we can go to Baldur’s Gate and kill Cazador." |
Astarion barked a sardonic laugh. "Easy as that? Won’t you be busy with living? With friends and lovers? Frolicking in the sunshine with all the friendly animals like a good little elf?" he should be elated, he should be celebrating, not trying to pick a fight with her. The plan was an amazing success; he had her e... |
She chose to ignore his baiting; he was as good as drunk and, it seemed, looking for a fight. "Astarion, why did you hunt a bear? You saw what Halsin could do in bear form when we rescued him. He turned two Worgs to paste! You could have died out there." |
Her emotions choked the words in her throat as the truth of those words settled over here. He could have died. The limits of vampiric abilities may be unknown to her, but most undead couldn’t survive being shredded into tiny pieces by a large animal. He could have never returned. She blinked back tears at the thought. |
"Because fuck Halsin." Astarion spat in response to her question. "Fuck his stupid bear form, fuck his beating heart, fuck his not being able to heal you, fuck his wanting to take you to the Underdark and FUCK that he wants you." |
Tav blinked at this onslaught of anger and jealousy. It was a lot to take in and she really wanted a moment to process it all, but Astarion had deflated into sadness and had already taken a step back from her. |
"You don’t..." He trailed off, "I’ll..." he was turning around to leave and she wasn’t going to let that happen. |
Tav hopped off the stone, surging after Astarion. He could vanish into the shadows at will and she was very glad he didn’t, or following him would have been impossible. She grabbed his hand, bringing him to a halt. |
"Please wait?" Tav asked, "Come sit with me. The sky is clear and I can see all the stars. Join me?" |
His shoulders slumped. He looked truly defeated. "Do you really want that?" |
"To watch the stars with you?" Tav gave him a gentle smile, "Yes, very much." |
Astarion allowed her to lead him back to the rock, where they settled together and looked up at the glittering lights above. Her hand found his and she tried to hold it, but his hand clutched hers tightly. She returned the grip just as tight. |
"I understand," Tav told the glittering firmament above, "That when you are "more than friends’, you are in something called a relationship. Shadowheart tells me that most relationships up here are for two people only. Two people pledge to each other that they will only love each other and no one else. That’s what a re... |
"Yes, I suppose." Disaffected Astarion was back. Fair enough, let him have the safety of his masks after spitting such vitriol at the mere existence of Halsin. "But lots of people do share, darling." |
"Well, I don’t want to share." Tav leaned her body into his, resting her head on a bloodied shoulder. "I just want you." |
"You deserve better than me." Astarion sighed. |
"You probably deserve a drow that doesn’t lose her mind in a spider fight." Tav replied with a self-depreciating grin, "I just don’t think I would like "better than you’ nearly as much as I like you." |
He lets her hand go to wrap his arm fully around her shoulders. His grip still possessively tight. |
He doesn’t reply. |
Tav's last words were mumbled, something about wanting to dance, then she had slipped into a restful trance, her head a comforting weight on his shoulder. He let her rest against him, enjoying the feeling of simply being with her. Two days in a row he had woken at her side and it felt... right. Safe and warm; feelings ... |
And now he had Tav. He had trust, safety, mind-blowing sex... friendship. Someone who wanted him for more than his body. Someone who had never hurt him and actively kept others from hurting him. She deserved more than his stupid manipulations, but it was all he knew. A few weeks of vastly improved circumstances couldn... |
She deserved to rest in proper bedding, not on a rock outside. She deserved a proper bath, a long massage and rest in an actual bed - he did too - but one had to start somewhere. Astarion scooped her into his arms, surprised at how light she felt; he decided that Lae’zel was no longer allowed to carry her in emergency ... |
Astarion began carrying her through the darkness, returning to the now-quiet camp. The party had blown itself out, it was time to return to their tents. As he walked, he debated on if he should tuck Tav into her own tent alone, or just bring her straight to his. Their things were probably still piled in the delightful ... |
As he made his way over and around Tieflings and Druids in various stages of drunken unconsciousness, a large shape moved from the shadows near Tav’s tent. |
"There she is." The Master Druid spoke, his deep voice a quiet rumble in the night. "I worried something had happened." |
"We were stargazing," Astarion ground out, frustrated that he had to speak to the hulking elf at all. "She slipped into trance." |
"Stargazing draws a lot of blood, does it?" Halsin asked, planting his feet in a deliberate stand. |
Astarion had forgotten entirely about the bear. It probably didn’t look very good, his blood-splattered self hauling an unconscious woman through the camp. Their party wouldn’t blink twice at the sight, but they knew her, they accepted him at her request. Halsin had barely interacted with him since the group rescued th... |
"Does she know what you are?" The druid asked, softly, with an air of danger about him. The trees and grass rustled near him, but there was no breeze to rustle them. Branches creaking, stretching towards him. |
"Wake up, Tav’ryneer, wake up now." |
Tav’s eyes snapped open as Astarion near dropped her to her feet. Magic swirled around her, ready to be used. What was happening, were they attacked? A fireball half formed in her hand before she truly understood what she was seeing. |
The camp was dark and peaceful. Halsin stood before them, awake, various party members were scattered about the camp asleep or in drunken stupor. No threats at all. Astarion was stiff at her back, nervous and worried all the same. |
She let the fireball dissipate into the weave. "Astarion, what’s wrong?" Tav was tired and confused, not seeing the danger Astarion obviously believed them to be in. |
"Talk to him before a tree stakes me." Astarion spat. |
Gods, had he got into a drunken fight with Halsin while she tranced in his arms? He wasn’t even in armor. She cast Mage Armor on Astarion to give him better protection before turning to Halsin. Fear brought forth forty years of instinct as a Lolth-sworn drow. She would protect what was hers, especially from a surface e... |
"Explain." She demanded imperiously, as was her right to demand of any lowly male. |
Halsin responded exactly as he should. His eyes dropped to the ground, his hands opening in front of his chest to show they were unarmed. Any druidic magic he may have been preparing dissipated into the night air. A wood elf who knew his place, how rare. She would wonder about his proper responses later. |
"My lady," Halsin said with proper deference. "You were carried back into camp by a Vampire. I worried for your safety." |
"Not a Vampire. Astarion is my Vampire." She proclaimed, "You are right to care for my safety, but not like this. Astarion presents no harm to us." |
"As you say, my lady." Halsin inclined his head, every line of his body deferring to her authority. |
"Leave us." She snapped. |
Halsin turned on his heel and left her tent. |
Astarion near-tackled her into his. |
Hot as it was to have an amorous vampire overcome with lust for her, she wasn’t into it at that exact moment. They needed to talk. |
Especially when he murmured "you deserve a reward." into her neck. |
"Astarion, please stop." Tav liked that he immediately listened to her, but didn’t like how he backed away from her and looked so nervous. She took his hands in hers, "I do not deserve a reward. You’re worthy of protection because you’re... you’re a person. Not because you’ll fuck me." |
He gave her a charming pout, "So I’m not "your vampire’?" |
Tav rolled her eyes. "Eilistraee save me from beautiful men." |
"I am beautiful!" Astarion agreed. |
Tav smacked him in the arm. "Be serious for a moment , that could have ended terribly!" |
Astarion sighed, the smarm draining out of him for a moment. "Yes, it could have. I know. But it’s over now and I don’t know what you want." |
He really did break her heart sometimes. They were quite the fucked up pair. |
"I want," Tav spoke slowly, trying to gauge his reaction as she went, "to assure myself that you're ok, then probably go back to sleep." |
"And how would you like that assurance, my pet?" Astarion smoldered, pure sex appeal, but it was overly practiced. Mechanical. He was hiding behind a mask again. |
"Feed." She said, simply. |
"Darling, no, that’s for-" |
"It’s for you. Yes. You deserve things for you. " Tav interrupted him. "For no other reason than you are you. So hold me, and feed. I’ll go back to my own tent after, if you’d like a night to yourself for once." |
"Absolutely not." His mask was crumbling, but she didn’t know what caused his grip to loosen. She wanted to respect his space, even when together like this. He hadn’t asked her about her behavior with Halsin, after all. They could speak of things in the morning. This moment was about reassurance. Tav lay back, baring h... |
Astarion joined her immediately. She ignored the sob muffled into her neck, before his practiced fangs slipped into her jugular. |
At some point during the night, Blood-Drunk Astarion had removed most of his clothing, and hers. She drifted back to consciousness to realize they were both in nothing but smallclothes, snuggled tightly against each other, skin-to-skin. They had been like this long enough that his body was almost warm against hers, ref... |
Astarion seemed to be deeply entranced, still. Blood-drunk sleep seemed to be quite similar to alcohol-drunk sleep that way. He rolled away from her, before his body returned to deathly stillness. She realized, with shock, that she had never seen his back before and now she knew why. |
Astarion’s back was a mess of deeply scarred infernal writing. She didn’t know enough to read it, but the shape of it brought back memories of Arach-Tinilith. She hadn’t spent long at the clerical school of Menzoberranzan, the manifestation of her Sorcerer’s abilities had shown early on that her path lay elsewhere. The... |
Her mind echoed with the summoning chants. |
... doer ulu udossa Glabrezu. ... tlu xuil udossa Glabrezu! |
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