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elen_nareTitle: silence and patience (pining and anticipation)
Fandom: High Rollers (Aerois campaign)
Rating: G
Length: 2740 words
Content notes: Quill/Lucius, set in some vague post-current-canon (episode 154, The Knights of Grief) near future, some spoilers. For the fan_flashworks prompt "iktsuarpok (n. Inuit) the anticipation of waiting for a loved one". Title comes for "Dress" by Taylor Swift.
Author notes: I've had this idea in my head for *months*, I'm so glad this prompt got me to write it!
Summary: “Having a secret boyfriend would be very romantic,” Lucius said hopefully, eyes sparkling as the words called back all the romance novels he’d read in secret as a teenager, afraid of being mocked for them. “And I love having secrets with you!”
On a normal day, Lucius tended to be among the latest comers to breakfast on the Stormchaser. Ironic, really, since as an elf he needed less sleep than most of the others; but he’d always had a bad habit of staying up late drawing, or painting, or just thinking, and then sleeping in. He usually enjoyed just lying lazily awake for a while before actually getting up, too. Today, though, too excited to stay in bed, he was up before the night watch came off duty - and before Howard’s porridge was ready, he realised belatedly. Still, it was all for the best; it gave him time to saunter along the deck to Faeth, still on watch, and whisper his news to her.
“Oh, Lucius, I’m so happy!” she whispered back, hastily lowering her voice from her initial squeak of joy at Lucius’s frantic shushing. “But why are we whispering?”
Lucius glanced around. Luckily, Faeth was on guard at the prow of the ship, far enough from the helm that he didn’t think Lancion, on duty there, could hear them. Still, he kept his voice low as he replied, “We’re going to try and keep it a secret for now.”
“Not for me, right?” she asked, looking worried. “I told you I’d deal with the pack, Kamarra will help me.”
“No, I know,” Lucius replied, putting an arm around her shoulders. “We just… think it’ll be fun to have it be a secret, just for us? I told Quill I had to tell you, of course, but otherwise we don’t want to tell anyone yet.”
Faeth smiled up at him. “You didn’t have to tell me, but I’m glad you did. I’m so happy for you! And I’ll help you keep it a secret if I can.”
They chatted a bit more, then Lucius left Faeth to finish her watch and headed back down below decks. Breakfast must be ready by now - and maybe Quill would be there? Birdie was always an early riser… His heart beat faster at the thought, and he found himself hurrying down the ladder. No, that wouldn’t do, he told himself sternly, forcing himself to slow down. He’d give it away in no time if he wasn’t careful! Maybe he shouldn’t have got up so early, would it be suspicious? Should he go back to bed? But he wanted to see Quill so much…
“Good morning, Captain!” Oriya interrupted his musings. “On your way to breakfast already?”
Damn, it was suspicious, but he couldn’t go back to his room now. “Yes, I couldn’t sleep, so I thought I might as well get up,” he replied, and followed her to the galley.
Breakfast was always rather chaotic, with people queuing up for the generous bowlfuls of porridge Howard ladled out, adding some of the dried fruit and honey Lucius always insisted should be available to it, or getting coffee from Sentry, who delighted in brewing it. Being earlier than usual meant there was even more chaos than Lucius was accustomed to, as all the crew crowded around the cook. It should have been hard to spot anyone in the mass of people, yet the moment he stepped into the room, Lucius’s eyes were instantly drawn to the particular flash of dark orange that was Quill’s tunic.
As if he’d heard something - he probably had, it was Birdie, no doubt he could tell all their footsteps apart - Quill looked over at him, their eyes meeting for a second. Only for a second, then Quill broke the look and stepped back, letting Penny take her turn to get coffee, but just that second had hit Lucius like a lightning bolt. Had Quill felt it too, he wondered, that energy that seemed to have electrified him? He had, Lucius was sure he had, from the way he’d looked away so abruptly, from how carefully he was not looking at Lucius now.
Which was what he should be doing too, Lucius reminded himself, waving Oriya ahead of him in the queue and refusing the wolfpack’s offers to let them cut the line. He couldn’t give their secret away! No-one knew, no-one had noticed that quick glance, he was certain… The excitement of it all ran like a shiver down his spine, and he bit his lip to stop himself grinning.
Not really thinking about what he was doing, too thrilled by their secret, he followed Oriya automatically to a table - and only then realised it was the same one Quill was sitting at! Well, he couldn’t go to another one now, that would look weird; especially as Aila was already there too, shooting Lucius a quizzical look.
“You’re up early!” Aila remarked to him, moving up to make room. “Usually you and Nova don’t show up until I’ve finished.”
“Hey, Lu-lucius, Oriya,” Quill said, looking quickly up at them, then back down at his breakfast. “Did you sleep well?”
“Very well, thank you,” Oriya said, taking the space Aila had made, leaving Lucius no option but to sit next to Quill.
“Oh, yes,” Lucius replied, then remembered he’d told Oriya the opposite just a moment ago. “Or, not so well, I woke up early, so I thought I might as well get up.”
“I’m sorry to - to hear that,” Quill answered, shooting him a quick sideways glance. Quick, but long enough for Lucius to see his eyes sparkling, to know Quill knew why he hadn’t been able to stay in bed, and was enjoying this just as much as he was.
“Well, I’m glad you’re both here early,” Oriya said. “I wanted to ask if you would take the helm for a while, Captain, while I go over our route with the Quartermaster? We’re heading into some bad weather regions, so I’d like to be prepared.”
Oh, this was perfect, Lucius exulted. “Of course! Maybe you could update me on what you decide after Oriya relieves me, Quartermaster, if it’s convenient?”
“It will be,” Quill agreed at once.
Breakfast over, Lucius stood alone at the helm of the Stormchaser. Faeth had stopped by briefly on her way down, ostensibly to wish him a good day, but really to whisper with a laugh that if it was going to be a secret, he should try not to stare at Quill so much! Which was good advice, Lucius knew, but so hard to follow - his eyes seemed to seek Quill out of their own accord. At least Quill was down in the library now, poring over his mappies, instead of distracting Lucius from the helm. But really, even without Quill’s presence, there wasn’t much to hold his attention - the wind was perfect, the day clear and cloudless, and their route straight as a die for miles to come. Try as he might, he couldn’t stop his thoughts drifting away to the evening before…
“What do we do now?” Quill had asked softly, once he’d managed to catch the breath Lucius’s kisses had stolen from him.
“What do you mean?” Lucius replied, tilting his head slightly where it rested on Quill’s shoulder so he could meet his eyes. “Isn’t this ok?” Worry started to creep into his voice. He felt he could stay like this forever, cuddled in the warmth of Quill’s wings, but if Quill didn’t want that…
“Yes! It’s wonderful,” Quill reassured him, rubbing his head against Lucius’s. “I didn’t mean right now, I meant more… Do we - do we tell people? Or do we keep it for ourselves?”
“Oh! I see.” Lucius considered it. “Having a secret boyfriend would be very romantic,” he said hopefully, eyes sparkling as the words called back all the romance novels he’d read in secret as a teenager, afraid of being mocked for them. “And I love having secrets with you!”
Quill giggled. “I was hoping you’d say that, I love it when we have secrets too. Though you haven’t - haven’t asked me to be your boyfriend yet,” he teased.
“I haven’t! I’m sorry, that was presumptuous.” Lucius could see Quill had only meant to tease, but he still felt his cheeks heating up in genuine embarrassment.
“Oh, Lucius,” Quill said with a fond chuckle, caressing the side of his face. “We’ve just confessed we l-love each other. I don’t need a formal request! And I haven’t asked you, eith-”
Lucius cut him off by placing a finger on his beak, instantly determined to be the one who asked. “You may not need a formal request, but you deserve it,” he said firmly. “Qillek Ad Khollar, will you do me the incredible honour of being my boyfriend?”
The initial amusement in Quill’s face at the formality quickly faded, leaving only love as he nodded rapidly. “I will, of course I will. I love you, my boyfriend,” he replied, hugging Lucius tightly.
“I love you too,” Lucius said, returning the hug. “And I love hearing you call me that.”
“My secret boyfriend… it really does feel very - very romantic!” Quill giggled again.
“It does mean we’ll have to sneak around, though, we may not be able to spend all that much time together.” Lucius’s face fell at the realisation.
Quill frowned for a few moments, thinking, then his face lit up. “I know! We can do it like - like when you wanted to talk to me about not wanting to be an aarakocra any more, pretend you’re summoning me to… to do ship business, go over supply lists and stuff. Or - or even that you’re lecturing me again, make you seem like a really stern captain!”
“That’s brilliant, Birdie!” Lucius exclaimed, and kissed him enthusiastically. “But… wait… that means I’m the one who’s always deciding when we meet? I don’t think I like that…”
“Well, you are the Captain,” Quill pointed out. “I can’t very well demand your presence!”
“I don’t want to be the Captain, though. Not here, not with you, I just want to be…” yours, he wanted to say, but didn’t quite dare. “Lucius,” he settled on instead.
The look on Quill’s face made Lucius wonder if Birdie had somehow heard the word he hadn’t said. “I understand,” was all he whispered, though, nuzzling his cheek with his soft feathery head.
“I don’t want you to feel you have to come, if you’re busy or you just don’t feel like it,” Lucius continued, thinking hard. Then it hit him. “I’ve got it! How silly of me not to think of it before. I can send a message-ie that I want to see you if it’s convenient. Then if you’re working on something or you don’t want to come, you can just send one back saying it isn’t!”
“If I’m busy, say it’s not convenient,” Quill thought it over. “Ye-yes, I think that would work?”
“If you’re busy, or if you just don’t feel like it!” Lucius emphasised.
“So if I’m busy,” Quill repeated, eyes twinkling.
“I mean it, Quillie! I don’t want you to feel you have to come just because I asked, I want you to want to come. Promise me!”
“I can’t imagine not wanting to come and spend time with you,” Quill said softly. “But I promise, and I love you for thinking of it.”
Lucius darted around his quarters, too jittery with anticipation to be still, adjusting a cushion here and a throw there. How soon would Quill come? He hadn’t sent word through Oriya that he’d be busy, like they’d agreed, so surely it would be soon, right? Or would he be expecting Lucius to send him another message? No, they’d arranged it all at breakfast, Quill had understood the plan, surely he had. He was so smart!
The memory of that breakfast distracted Lucius a little from his impromptu redecorating, the thought of the mischievous smile that had tugged at the corner of Quill’s mouth as he agreed to come to Lucius after working with Oriya, how it had taken Lucius everything he had not to lean over and kiss it. But he’d held himself in, doing his best to chatter as usual, to not react when the tips of Quill’s feathers brushed against him every so often. A single look he’d caught had convinced Lucius that Quill was doing that on purpose, leaving him torn between delight and indignation. Turnabout was fair play, he’d decided, and had seized the chance Sentry joining them gave him to move up closer to Quill, ‘accidentally’ nudging him with his knee and feeling vindicated when Quill had dropped both his spoon and the thread of what he’d been saying. Yes, Quill had understood the plan, Lucius knew he had… So why wasn’t he here yet?
Before Lucius could get so impatient he completely dismantled his room or talked himself into sending a messenger, a knock sounded on his door. Lucius nearly ran across the room, then forced himself to stand and wait for a few seconds. If it wasn’t Quill, they’d be surprised if he opened the door too fast… But he couldn’t wait any longer, he really couldn’t, he thought, as he threw open the door.
To his intense relief, it was indeed Quill standing there. The moment Lucius opened the door, he gave him a crisp salute.
“Reporting as you requested, Captain,” he said formally.
Lucius saluted back, hands trembling with the effort to not pull Quill into his arms instead. “Thank you, Quartermaster! Come in, please,” he replied with equal formality, ushering him in.
The moment he closed the door, Quill’s wings flew around him. Letting out a breath he didn’t know he’d been holding, Lucius turned around and embraced his boyfriend, so tightly he lifted him off his feet.
“Lucius! Put me down!” Quill said, laughing.
Lucius considered it for a second. “No,” he decided, laughing too. “You’re not going anywhere.”
“I don’t want to go anywhere, I just don’t - don’t want you to hurt yourself!”
“You’re not heavy, I can hold you up,” Lucius discounted that. He tried to kiss Quill’s beak, hoping to silence any further argument, then discovered a glaring flaw of this embrace - he couldn’t quite reach it at this angle.
“Put me down and kiss me, secret boyfriend,” Quill told him, with a smirk that made Lucius quite certain he’d realised what Lucius had tried and failed to do.
“I’m the Captain, you shouldn’t be giving me orders,” Lucius grasped at the first argument he could find.
“You said - said you didn’t want to be the Captain with me,” Quill retorted instantly, smile broadening.
Lucius didn’t, and he didn’t at all mind Quill giving him an order, especially one that was so exactly what he wanted to do, he realised. “You’re right,” he conceded, setting Quill carefully back down, then started to kiss him before he could crow about his victory.
It wasn’t quite as easy as if Quill had been another elf, but Lucius had already had yesterday to try some things out (and before that, had already had months of daydreaming about how he might kiss Quill, even as he was too afraid to admit how badly he wanted to). He pressed his lips to the tip of Quill’s beak, the sides of it, the soft creamy feathers of his throat, as Quill held him close and ran gentle talons through his hair.
“I had an idea earlier today, while I was at the helm,” Lucius said a while later, as they cuddled on his couch once again. “Oriya said there was bad weather ahead, right? Could you possibly get us lost in some clouds?”
Quill blinked at him. “I… I can try, but - but why? Oh, so you can summon me to lecture me for taking us into bad weather?”
“That too I suppose, but it doesn’t seem fair if I ask you to mess up,” Lucius frowned.
“It wouldn’t be if you were actually going to lecture me, no, but I assumed you wouldn’t,” Quill said, laughing. “What were you thinking of, then, if it wasn’t that?”
“Well, you can fly, and I can walk on clouds with my armour. We could say we’re going to scout ahead and find the edge of the clouds or something? Maybe it’s a silly idea…” Lucius trailed off, losing confidence.
Quill shook his head, eyes shining. “I wanted a way to take you flying, and I couldn’t think of one that would be secret… That's perfect, my love. I’ll find us some clouds, and we can get lost in them together.”
Fandom: High Rollers (Aerois campaign)
Rating: G
Length: 2740 words
Content notes: Quill/Lucius, set in some vague post-current-canon (episode 154, The Knights of Grief) near future, some spoilers. For the fan_flashworks prompt "iktsuarpok (n. Inuit) the anticipation of waiting for a loved one". Title comes for "Dress" by Taylor Swift.
Author notes: I've had this idea in my head for *months*, I'm so glad this prompt got me to write it!
Summary: “Having a secret boyfriend would be very romantic,” Lucius said hopefully, eyes sparkling as the words called back all the romance novels he’d read in secret as a teenager, afraid of being mocked for them. “And I love having secrets with you!”
On a normal day, Lucius tended to be among the latest comers to breakfast on the Stormchaser. Ironic, really, since as an elf he needed less sleep than most of the others; but he’d always had a bad habit of staying up late drawing, or painting, or just thinking, and then sleeping in. He usually enjoyed just lying lazily awake for a while before actually getting up, too. Today, though, too excited to stay in bed, he was up before the night watch came off duty - and before Howard’s porridge was ready, he realised belatedly. Still, it was all for the best; it gave him time to saunter along the deck to Faeth, still on watch, and whisper his news to her.
“Oh, Lucius, I’m so happy!” she whispered back, hastily lowering her voice from her initial squeak of joy at Lucius’s frantic shushing. “But why are we whispering?”
Lucius glanced around. Luckily, Faeth was on guard at the prow of the ship, far enough from the helm that he didn’t think Lancion, on duty there, could hear them. Still, he kept his voice low as he replied, “We’re going to try and keep it a secret for now.”
“Not for me, right?” she asked, looking worried. “I told you I’d deal with the pack, Kamarra will help me.”
“No, I know,” Lucius replied, putting an arm around her shoulders. “We just… think it’ll be fun to have it be a secret, just for us? I told Quill I had to tell you, of course, but otherwise we don’t want to tell anyone yet.”
Faeth smiled up at him. “You didn’t have to tell me, but I’m glad you did. I’m so happy for you! And I’ll help you keep it a secret if I can.”
They chatted a bit more, then Lucius left Faeth to finish her watch and headed back down below decks. Breakfast must be ready by now - and maybe Quill would be there? Birdie was always an early riser… His heart beat faster at the thought, and he found himself hurrying down the ladder. No, that wouldn’t do, he told himself sternly, forcing himself to slow down. He’d give it away in no time if he wasn’t careful! Maybe he shouldn’t have got up so early, would it be suspicious? Should he go back to bed? But he wanted to see Quill so much…
“Good morning, Captain!” Oriya interrupted his musings. “On your way to breakfast already?”
Damn, it was suspicious, but he couldn’t go back to his room now. “Yes, I couldn’t sleep, so I thought I might as well get up,” he replied, and followed her to the galley.
Breakfast was always rather chaotic, with people queuing up for the generous bowlfuls of porridge Howard ladled out, adding some of the dried fruit and honey Lucius always insisted should be available to it, or getting coffee from Sentry, who delighted in brewing it. Being earlier than usual meant there was even more chaos than Lucius was accustomed to, as all the crew crowded around the cook. It should have been hard to spot anyone in the mass of people, yet the moment he stepped into the room, Lucius’s eyes were instantly drawn to the particular flash of dark orange that was Quill’s tunic.
As if he’d heard something - he probably had, it was Birdie, no doubt he could tell all their footsteps apart - Quill looked over at him, their eyes meeting for a second. Only for a second, then Quill broke the look and stepped back, letting Penny take her turn to get coffee, but just that second had hit Lucius like a lightning bolt. Had Quill felt it too, he wondered, that energy that seemed to have electrified him? He had, Lucius was sure he had, from the way he’d looked away so abruptly, from how carefully he was not looking at Lucius now.
Which was what he should be doing too, Lucius reminded himself, waving Oriya ahead of him in the queue and refusing the wolfpack’s offers to let them cut the line. He couldn’t give their secret away! No-one knew, no-one had noticed that quick glance, he was certain… The excitement of it all ran like a shiver down his spine, and he bit his lip to stop himself grinning.
Not really thinking about what he was doing, too thrilled by their secret, he followed Oriya automatically to a table - and only then realised it was the same one Quill was sitting at! Well, he couldn’t go to another one now, that would look weird; especially as Aila was already there too, shooting Lucius a quizzical look.
“You’re up early!” Aila remarked to him, moving up to make room. “Usually you and Nova don’t show up until I’ve finished.”
“Hey, Lu-lucius, Oriya,” Quill said, looking quickly up at them, then back down at his breakfast. “Did you sleep well?”
“Very well, thank you,” Oriya said, taking the space Aila had made, leaving Lucius no option but to sit next to Quill.
“Oh, yes,” Lucius replied, then remembered he’d told Oriya the opposite just a moment ago. “Or, not so well, I woke up early, so I thought I might as well get up.”
“I’m sorry to - to hear that,” Quill answered, shooting him a quick sideways glance. Quick, but long enough for Lucius to see his eyes sparkling, to know Quill knew why he hadn’t been able to stay in bed, and was enjoying this just as much as he was.
“Well, I’m glad you’re both here early,” Oriya said. “I wanted to ask if you would take the helm for a while, Captain, while I go over our route with the Quartermaster? We’re heading into some bad weather regions, so I’d like to be prepared.”
Oh, this was perfect, Lucius exulted. “Of course! Maybe you could update me on what you decide after Oriya relieves me, Quartermaster, if it’s convenient?”
“It will be,” Quill agreed at once.
******
Breakfast over, Lucius stood alone at the helm of the Stormchaser. Faeth had stopped by briefly on her way down, ostensibly to wish him a good day, but really to whisper with a laugh that if it was going to be a secret, he should try not to stare at Quill so much! Which was good advice, Lucius knew, but so hard to follow - his eyes seemed to seek Quill out of their own accord. At least Quill was down in the library now, poring over his mappies, instead of distracting Lucius from the helm. But really, even without Quill’s presence, there wasn’t much to hold his attention - the wind was perfect, the day clear and cloudless, and their route straight as a die for miles to come. Try as he might, he couldn’t stop his thoughts drifting away to the evening before…
“What do we do now?” Quill had asked softly, once he’d managed to catch the breath Lucius’s kisses had stolen from him.
“What do you mean?” Lucius replied, tilting his head slightly where it rested on Quill’s shoulder so he could meet his eyes. “Isn’t this ok?” Worry started to creep into his voice. He felt he could stay like this forever, cuddled in the warmth of Quill’s wings, but if Quill didn’t want that…
“Yes! It’s wonderful,” Quill reassured him, rubbing his head against Lucius’s. “I didn’t mean right now, I meant more… Do we - do we tell people? Or do we keep it for ourselves?”
“Oh! I see.” Lucius considered it. “Having a secret boyfriend would be very romantic,” he said hopefully, eyes sparkling as the words called back all the romance novels he’d read in secret as a teenager, afraid of being mocked for them. “And I love having secrets with you!”
Quill giggled. “I was hoping you’d say that, I love it when we have secrets too. Though you haven’t - haven’t asked me to be your boyfriend yet,” he teased.
“I haven’t! I’m sorry, that was presumptuous.” Lucius could see Quill had only meant to tease, but he still felt his cheeks heating up in genuine embarrassment.
“Oh, Lucius,” Quill said with a fond chuckle, caressing the side of his face. “We’ve just confessed we l-love each other. I don’t need a formal request! And I haven’t asked you, eith-”
Lucius cut him off by placing a finger on his beak, instantly determined to be the one who asked. “You may not need a formal request, but you deserve it,” he said firmly. “Qillek Ad Khollar, will you do me the incredible honour of being my boyfriend?”
The initial amusement in Quill’s face at the formality quickly faded, leaving only love as he nodded rapidly. “I will, of course I will. I love you, my boyfriend,” he replied, hugging Lucius tightly.
“I love you too,” Lucius said, returning the hug. “And I love hearing you call me that.”
“My secret boyfriend… it really does feel very - very romantic!” Quill giggled again.
“It does mean we’ll have to sneak around, though, we may not be able to spend all that much time together.” Lucius’s face fell at the realisation.
Quill frowned for a few moments, thinking, then his face lit up. “I know! We can do it like - like when you wanted to talk to me about not wanting to be an aarakocra any more, pretend you’re summoning me to… to do ship business, go over supply lists and stuff. Or - or even that you’re lecturing me again, make you seem like a really stern captain!”
“That’s brilliant, Birdie!” Lucius exclaimed, and kissed him enthusiastically. “But… wait… that means I’m the one who’s always deciding when we meet? I don’t think I like that…”
“Well, you are the Captain,” Quill pointed out. “I can’t very well demand your presence!”
“I don’t want to be the Captain, though. Not here, not with you, I just want to be…” yours, he wanted to say, but didn’t quite dare. “Lucius,” he settled on instead.
The look on Quill’s face made Lucius wonder if Birdie had somehow heard the word he hadn’t said. “I understand,” was all he whispered, though, nuzzling his cheek with his soft feathery head.
“I don’t want you to feel you have to come, if you’re busy or you just don’t feel like it,” Lucius continued, thinking hard. Then it hit him. “I’ve got it! How silly of me not to think of it before. I can send a message-ie that I want to see you if it’s convenient. Then if you’re working on something or you don’t want to come, you can just send one back saying it isn’t!”
“If I’m busy, say it’s not convenient,” Quill thought it over. “Ye-yes, I think that would work?”
“If you’re busy, or if you just don’t feel like it!” Lucius emphasised.
“So if I’m busy,” Quill repeated, eyes twinkling.
“I mean it, Quillie! I don’t want you to feel you have to come just because I asked, I want you to want to come. Promise me!”
“I can’t imagine not wanting to come and spend time with you,” Quill said softly. “But I promise, and I love you for thinking of it.”
******
Lucius darted around his quarters, too jittery with anticipation to be still, adjusting a cushion here and a throw there. How soon would Quill come? He hadn’t sent word through Oriya that he’d be busy, like they’d agreed, so surely it would be soon, right? Or would he be expecting Lucius to send him another message? No, they’d arranged it all at breakfast, Quill had understood the plan, surely he had. He was so smart!
The memory of that breakfast distracted Lucius a little from his impromptu redecorating, the thought of the mischievous smile that had tugged at the corner of Quill’s mouth as he agreed to come to Lucius after working with Oriya, how it had taken Lucius everything he had not to lean over and kiss it. But he’d held himself in, doing his best to chatter as usual, to not react when the tips of Quill’s feathers brushed against him every so often. A single look he’d caught had convinced Lucius that Quill was doing that on purpose, leaving him torn between delight and indignation. Turnabout was fair play, he’d decided, and had seized the chance Sentry joining them gave him to move up closer to Quill, ‘accidentally’ nudging him with his knee and feeling vindicated when Quill had dropped both his spoon and the thread of what he’d been saying. Yes, Quill had understood the plan, Lucius knew he had… So why wasn’t he here yet?
Before Lucius could get so impatient he completely dismantled his room or talked himself into sending a messenger, a knock sounded on his door. Lucius nearly ran across the room, then forced himself to stand and wait for a few seconds. If it wasn’t Quill, they’d be surprised if he opened the door too fast… But he couldn’t wait any longer, he really couldn’t, he thought, as he threw open the door.
To his intense relief, it was indeed Quill standing there. The moment Lucius opened the door, he gave him a crisp salute.
“Reporting as you requested, Captain,” he said formally.
Lucius saluted back, hands trembling with the effort to not pull Quill into his arms instead. “Thank you, Quartermaster! Come in, please,” he replied with equal formality, ushering him in.
The moment he closed the door, Quill’s wings flew around him. Letting out a breath he didn’t know he’d been holding, Lucius turned around and embraced his boyfriend, so tightly he lifted him off his feet.
“Lucius! Put me down!” Quill said, laughing.
Lucius considered it for a second. “No,” he decided, laughing too. “You’re not going anywhere.”
“I don’t want to go anywhere, I just don’t - don’t want you to hurt yourself!”
“You’re not heavy, I can hold you up,” Lucius discounted that. He tried to kiss Quill’s beak, hoping to silence any further argument, then discovered a glaring flaw of this embrace - he couldn’t quite reach it at this angle.
“Put me down and kiss me, secret boyfriend,” Quill told him, with a smirk that made Lucius quite certain he’d realised what Lucius had tried and failed to do.
“I’m the Captain, you shouldn’t be giving me orders,” Lucius grasped at the first argument he could find.
“You said - said you didn’t want to be the Captain with me,” Quill retorted instantly, smile broadening.
Lucius didn’t, and he didn’t at all mind Quill giving him an order, especially one that was so exactly what he wanted to do, he realised. “You’re right,” he conceded, setting Quill carefully back down, then started to kiss him before he could crow about his victory.
It wasn’t quite as easy as if Quill had been another elf, but Lucius had already had yesterday to try some things out (and before that, had already had months of daydreaming about how he might kiss Quill, even as he was too afraid to admit how badly he wanted to). He pressed his lips to the tip of Quill’s beak, the sides of it, the soft creamy feathers of his throat, as Quill held him close and ran gentle talons through his hair.
“I had an idea earlier today, while I was at the helm,” Lucius said a while later, as they cuddled on his couch once again. “Oriya said there was bad weather ahead, right? Could you possibly get us lost in some clouds?”
Quill blinked at him. “I… I can try, but - but why? Oh, so you can summon me to lecture me for taking us into bad weather?”
“That too I suppose, but it doesn’t seem fair if I ask you to mess up,” Lucius frowned.
“It wouldn’t be if you were actually going to lecture me, no, but I assumed you wouldn’t,” Quill said, laughing. “What were you thinking of, then, if it wasn’t that?”
“Well, you can fly, and I can walk on clouds with my armour. We could say we’re going to scout ahead and find the edge of the clouds or something? Maybe it’s a silly idea…” Lucius trailed off, losing confidence.
Quill shook his head, eyes shining. “I wanted a way to take you flying, and I couldn’t think of one that would be secret… That's perfect, my love. I’ll find us some clouds, and we can get lost in them together.”
