Max can't help but notice the dampness as he puts a hand to Edgar's shoulder to guide him around to the sofa. They have a proper entertaining room now since the bed got moved to a separate room.
"Looks like a really bad night. You must be freezing cold, you're all covered in dew. Here, can I get you a robe? How about a hot cup of something to drink, too?" Maybe tea this time instead of coffee, Max thinks to himself. Something soothing.
As soon as he's sure Edgar is settled, Max hurries to start a kettle in the kitchen, then fetches his terrycloth bathrobe from the bedroom. By the time he's done handing that off to Edgar, the water is ready. Max finds a bag of chamomile and plops it in the cup and adds a dollop of honey for sweetness. Then, he returns to Edgar's side and sets the steaming mug on the coffee table in front of them.
"Just let that cool a little so you don't burn your tongue."
Now that those immediate concerns are seen to, Max gives Edgar another long appraising lookover. Not hard to see what's coming next. Max has questions.
"I dunno how I got wet," he says, sounding subdued, reaching for the mug. "Didn't go in the lake or anything, I just ... I was walking for a while after, and running, and that wasn't good enough so I tried flying. Had to stop after an hour though, that's how the wings work."
He takes a long drink of tea, and cradles the mug against his chest for the warmth.
Something about that neutral tone -- or maybe just something that's been vaguely nagging at Edgar for the past few hours -- makes him lift his head and look at Max in faint misgiving.
Max's expression is placid, like a mask --the better to hide the inner turmoil. It isn't really so hard to guess what Edgar is asking about. but he wants to hear the man say it.
Edgar rubs a hand over his face in turn. "I just wish to christ you'd told me. Maybe if I already knew, I'd have -- or maybe not, I dunno, I din't know what to do --"
His hand digs into his hair, tugs uselessly on a handful of it.
"I mean, what would you do?" Louder, now. "If you saw someone lying in the grass covered in blood and laughing? What would you think?"
And despite planning on keeping it together for this, Nott takes him up on the offer, and just -- curls up against him and cries. Not forever, not even for very long, but for a few minutes of hard sobbing that she hasn't let out with anyone yet.
At one point she hiccups out a "Sorry -- you di-idn't sign up for this" before burying her face in his chest* again. After another minute or two she manages to calm it down to hitching breaths and sniffling.
Max doesn't say a word while she cries, just holds her and rubs soothing circles on her back. His steady posture seems to say he could sit here all day just like this, but she calms after a while.
There's a light laugh from him, more a breath she'll feel in his chest, before he says, "This is exactly what I signed up for."
He waits a little for her to quiet before he elaborates on that, his voice calm but firm. "Nott, this is exactly what being a friend means to me. It means being there for the hard times too. So, yes, holding you like this is exactly what I signed up for. And you've already done the same for me."
He just so happens to have a handkerchief in his breast pocket, so he slips it out and offers it to her. "Here. Did you need this?"
"Th'nks." She takes the handkerchief and dabs at her eyes, blows her nose. "Uh, I will ... launder this."
When she looks up at him, her eyes are still a little watery. "You're a really nice man, Max. And you're a good friend. And I wish I had a good answer for you about what this" -- she gestures vaguely between them -- "is gonna be, I really really do."
"Tell you? Edgar... I'm not without sin on the issue but... I'm not just going to go around pointing out every vampire in this place just because."
And now Max is starting to get genuinely worried about what exactly went down between the two.
"I think I'd be pretty concerned for their wellbeing. I don't know. I'd have some questions, obviously. And I have some now, too. Edgar. Please. Just tell me what happened. Did the two of you get in a fight?"
Max wriggled in place, his whole body tingling from head to toe. Listening to the two of them discuss who should have the honor of drinking him down was just flat doing it for him. Fuck, he might go off before they made up their minds. Luckily, they didn't spend long deciding. Very luckily for Lioriley.
He felt the first pulse of impending orgasm shake him as her tongue lapped his cock. His muscles pulled tight until his back was arched out from the chair, chest pointed to the ceiling, head back as far as his neck could bend. Then she started bobbing down over his head. There was no holding on after that.
"FU-AAH!" His voice boomed in a wordless roar while waves of pleasure rolled through him, spilling from his cock in hard, hot spurts that left him whimpering in the wake of their intensity.
When the eruption finally finished, he was left a quivering, groaning mess in the chair. His half lidded eyes were too glazed over to see more than vague outlines of them. The glow of Lioriley's leylines looked like magic twinkling fireworks. So beautiful.
[Has she ever thought any more deeply into it than that? No. It's her job to be the meatshield and fight the bad guys. That's what Dad does. That's what Aunt Lynn does. That's what she does. That's what Ahrouns do. It's their whole purpose.]
Max winced at the thought. He knew it was absurd, but he still couldn't bring himself to hate Erik enough to want to see him hurt, or dead. Even the mental image of his master's head emancipated from his body was enough to make Max flinch. It wouldn't kill Erik, either. But it would hurt.
He could tell Astarion the real way to kill the vampire... but the moment the thought crossed his mind, Max's jaw locked up. He only managed a strangled, "Urk."
No. No, if Erik came, he'd have to find some better way to live with it.
"Ostracising them would make it harder but I know Erik would find his way around it." Maybe hurting some people in the process.
"It would be less painful for all of us if... If I talked to him and cut a deal. He can be reasoned with. The threat of turning him into a public enemy would be enough to convince him to play by the rules. If I sweeten the pot by agreeing to keep feeding him, it could be doable." Lucas and Rowan would have a fit about that, but that would be Max's burden to bear.
He gives a sigh, one that should sound aggrieved but his heart isn't in it.
"Came upon him a couple hours ago, round sunset, near the Wild. Lying on his back in the grass, like I said, singing out about how beautiful the sky was and that kind of nonsense. All over blood, but it didn't look like most of it was his. A lot of it in his mouth. Licking his lips for it."
Unconsciously -- if he were aware of it, he'd stop -- he rubs fitfully at his wrist.
"He din't look delirious, I've seen delirious. He looked drunk."
Drunk? Max frowns, perplexed. In his world, vampires only get drunk if they drink from someone who is. But Astarion isn't from his world. The rules can be and often are different.
"Maybe he was?" That's the best Max can do, with a shrug. "He might have gotten a little carried away with a feeding."
There's a brief flutter of worry that something similar to what happened with Quentin could have happened again. But, no. Astarion had better control now. And he wasn't starved anymore. And they were near the wilds so... maybe he got an owlbear or something? Shit, what if he drank something poisonous to him?
"I'm sure the fae can handle that," he says with a breathy chuckle.
"It's okay to not have an answer right now. I don't have one either. We can figure that out later. Might be easier after we've both had a minute to digest it."
He'd miss the flirting, and the more than flirting, he'll admit. But no way is he going to end their friendship over something as petty as that.
"I'd really love to hear more about your family. If you feel like you can talk about it?"
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
(no subject)
Date: 2021-08-16 07:55 pm (UTC)Despite the warm summer night outside, he feels chilled. Max may notice the faint dampness of condensation on his clothes, although he hasn't.
(no subject)
Date: 2021-08-16 08:02 pm (UTC)"Looks like a really bad night. You must be freezing cold, you're all covered in dew. Here, can I get you a robe? How about a hot cup of something to drink, too?" Maybe tea this time instead of coffee, Max thinks to himself. Something soothing.
(no subject)
Date: 2021-08-16 08:09 pm (UTC)"Oh," he says. "Yeah. Um, please."
(no subject)
Date: 2021-08-16 08:16 pm (UTC)"Just let that cool a little so you don't burn your tongue."
Now that those immediate concerns are seen to, Max gives Edgar another long appraising lookover. Not hard to see what's coming next. Max has questions.
"Can you tell me what happened?"
(no subject)
Date: 2021-08-16 08:31 pm (UTC)He takes a long drink of tea, and cradles the mug against his chest for the warmth.
(no subject)
Date: 2021-08-16 08:41 pm (UTC)"I'm sorry. Uh. Getting side-tracked. You've been upset and out there for hours? Why don't you start from the beginning for me?"
(no subject)
Date: 2021-08-16 09:06 pm (UTC)Finally, the name coming out on a long bitter sigh, he says "Astarion."
(no subject)
Date: 2021-08-16 09:12 pm (UTC)Keeping his voice as neutral as possible, Max asks, "What about him?"
(no subject)
Date: 2021-08-16 09:49 pm (UTC)all ive got is fightin
and stuff i aint alowed to rite down
i can drive???
(no subject)
Date: 2021-08-16 10:02 pm (UTC)"Did you know?"
(no subject)
Date: 2021-08-16 10:37 pm (UTC)"Know what?"
(no subject)
Date: 2021-08-16 11:09 pm (UTC)"Don't make me guess, man," he mumbles, low and strained. "Been shite at guessing tonight."
(no subject)
Date: 2021-08-16 11:16 pm (UTC)"He's a vampire spawn. Is that what you wanted to hear?"
(no subject)
Date: 2021-08-17 03:29 am (UTC)His hand digs into his hair, tugs uselessly on a handful of it.
"I mean, what would you do?" Louder, now. "If you saw someone lying in the grass covered in blood and laughing? What would you think?"
(no subject)
Date: 2021-08-17 02:34 pm (UTC)There's a light laugh from him, more a breath she'll feel in his chest, before he says, "This is exactly what I signed up for."
He waits a little for her to quiet before he elaborates on that, his voice calm but firm. "Nott, this is exactly what being a friend means to me. It means being there for the hard times too. So, yes, holding you like this is exactly what I signed up for. And you've already done the same for me."
He just so happens to have a handkerchief in his breast pocket, so he slips it out and offers it to her. "Here. Did you need this?"
(no subject)
Date: 2021-08-18 01:21 pm (UTC)And now Max is starting to get genuinely worried about what exactly went down between the two.
"I think I'd be pretty concerned for their wellbeing. I don't know. I'd have some questions, obviously. And I have some now, too. Edgar. Please. Just tell me what happened. Did the two of you get in a fight?"
(no subject)
Date: 2021-08-18 01:54 pm (UTC)He felt the first pulse of impending orgasm shake him as her tongue lapped his cock. His muscles pulled tight until his back was arched out from the chair, chest pointed to the ceiling, head back as far as his neck could bend. Then she started bobbing down over his head. There was no holding on after that.
"FU-AAH!" His voice boomed in a wordless roar while waves of pleasure rolled through him, spilling from his cock in hard, hot spurts that left him whimpering in the wake of their intensity.
When the eruption finally finished, he was left a quivering, groaning mess in the chair. His half lidded eyes were too glazed over to see more than vague outlines of them. The glow of Lioriley's leylines looked like magic twinkling fireworks. So beautiful.
(no subject)
Date: 2021-08-18 03:29 pm (UTC)Why do you fight? What do you fight for?
[Fighting may only be the surface level, but maybe he can get her to think slightly deeper. Maybe.]
(no subject)
Date: 2021-08-18 03:56 pm (UTC)becos thats my job
[Has she ever thought any more deeply into it than that? No. It's her job to be the meatshield and fight the bad guys. That's what Dad does. That's what Aunt Lynn does. That's what she does. That's what Ahrouns do. It's their whole purpose.]
if i dont do it johan dose it
i fight cos im told two
(no subject)
Date: 2021-08-18 04:16 pm (UTC)He could tell Astarion the real way to kill the vampire... but the moment the thought crossed his mind, Max's jaw locked up. He only managed a strangled, "Urk."
No. No, if Erik came, he'd have to find some better way to live with it.
"Ostracising them would make it harder but I know Erik would find his way around it." Maybe hurting some people in the process.
"It would be less painful for all of us if... If I talked to him and cut a deal. He can be reasoned with. The threat of turning him into a public enemy would be enough to convince him to play by the rules. If I sweeten the pot by agreeing to keep feeding him, it could be doable." Lucas and Rowan would have a fit about that, but that would be Max's burden to bear.
(no subject)
Date: 2021-08-18 04:23 pm (UTC)"Came upon him a couple hours ago, round sunset, near the Wild. Lying on his back in the grass, like I said, singing out about how beautiful the sky was and that kind of nonsense. All over blood, but it didn't look like most of it was his. A lot of it in his mouth. Licking his lips for it."
Unconsciously -- if he were aware of it, he'd stop -- he rubs fitfully at his wrist.
"He din't look delirious, I've seen delirious. He looked drunk."
(no subject)
Date: 2021-08-18 06:00 pm (UTC)"Maybe he was?" That's the best Max can do, with a shrug. "He might have gotten a little carried away with a feeding."
There's a brief flutter of worry that something similar to what happened with Quentin could have happened again. But, no. Astarion had better control now. And he wasn't starved anymore. And they were near the wilds so... maybe he got an owlbear or something? Shit, what if he drank something poisonous to him?
"Did you talk to him? Where is he now?"
(no subject)
Date: 2021-08-18 06:45 pm (UTC)"It's okay to not have an answer right now. I don't have one either. We can figure that out later. Might be easier after we've both had a minute to digest it."
He'd miss the flirting, and the more than flirting, he'll admit. But no way is he going to end their friendship over something as petty as that.
"I'd really love to hear more about your family. If you feel like you can talk about it?"