Eliot

[fawnthefae]

 Fin was supposed to be taking him to meet a friend, but when he'd gotten a job at the last minute, he'd insisted Fawn Go without him.

"Eliot's nice," his brother had said. "You'll like him, Fawn. Trust me."

And so Fawn had set off to the bar. It was nearly closing time and he moved through the dwindling crowd, heading towards the bar. He was the spitting image of Fin, a bit slighter, his hair much longer. He also dressed far more casually than Fin, favouring tunics over robes.

Nervous, he took a seat at the bar and looked around.

Comments

[fawnthefae]

"...It's not fun. Sometimes they get mean with each other," Fawn confessed. "But John says he'll try and be nicer."

[eliot_thespectacular]

"Well maybe it just means..." Eliot searched for what might actually make Fawn feel better. "How much they both care about you. And if they both do, they'll grow more comfortable with each other. Like - " He glanced around. "Like the bees congregating at a flower. They might worry at first that there won't be enough pollen for both of them, but they were attracted to the same flower in the first place so - "

He winced. "I'm sorry, that's not a good comparison is it."

[fawnthefae]

Fawn wrinkled his nose, then giggled. "I do worry John wants some of Fin's pollon," he admitted. "He's tried to get mine, and I said no. I am... Untouched," he explained.

[eliot_thespectacular]

"Oh," said Eliot. "Um." He wasn't sure which of those was more surprising. "Well, I..." He smiled self consciously. "I was really only trying to kiss you."

[fawnthefae]

"I know," Fawn assured him.

[eliot_thespectacular]

"And what, um, might happen if I tried again?" Eliot asked, trying to sound less awkward than he felt.

[fawnthefae]

"Do you want to kiss?" Fawn asked, equally awkward. He had so little experience with this sort of thing. "Is it bad if we kiss? You asked if John was- Um, manfriend. You mean love, yes? Like hearts?"

[eliot_thespectacular]

"I can't answer that for you," Eliot said gently. "I'm not trying to make trouble for you, I just... if you happen to want to kiss me, I would like that."

[fawnthefae]

Fawn was quiet for a long moment.

"I never kissed much before John, because I was alone, mostly. My kind are meant to be social- Filled with love. I am filled with love. ...But I don't know how to do it. Fin was born knowing- I wish I was like that. I like kissing. I would like to kiss you. But I am- I don't know the word. Like rocks. Still. Frozen? Not scared, but... I don't know, I don't know the words," he said again, looking frustrated. "And he does this too! He learned all the words. ...Why can I not do that?"

[eliot_thespectacular]

Eliot actually found himself genuinely sympathetic. He thought of how difficult it had been for him to take to being a king, and then again how he hadn't been able to adjust to being... not. Even now, maybe.

He waited for a moment and then said, "Sometimes it is difficult to know where to start." He hesitated, and then stepped closer. "... may I? Start."

[fawnthefae]

Fawn looked unsure, then nodded a little.

"Yes. Okay."

[eliot_thespectacular]

Eliot was pretty sure he was going to regret this, but it's not like he was known for forward-looking decisions.

Besides, he was bored, and part of him just wanted to know what would happen.

He moved closer still, put one hand lightly on his waist, and leaned in to brush his lips across Fawn's.

[fawnthefae]

Fawn was still for a beat, then slowly relaxed into the kiss.

[eliot_thespectacular]

Relieved, Eliot deepened the kiss a little. Not too much, intentionally going for, well... sweet. But it was a very nice kiss.

[fawnthefae]

Fawn let it linger a beat longer, then backed away shyly.

"That is nice," he admitted quietly. "You are nice."

[eliot_thespectacular]

Eliot smiled genuinely at that. "Sometimes," he said. "I try. I like being nice to you. And that was, as you say, nice."

[fawnthefae]

Fawn blushed, then asked something he realized he hadn't yet.

"Do you have a manfriend, or a ladyfriend. ...Or, um, a themfriend?"

[eliot_thespectacular]

Eliot had figured out that Fawn might not entirely understood what labels like that meant. But hey. Who did? And besides, the answer was almost certainly the same no matter how he might define them.

"No," he said. "There's no one."

[fawnthefae]

"Oh. ...Do you think you want someone? Someones? I suppose there is no set number of a one that one can has, " Fawn mused.

[eliot_thespectacular]

"I... don't know," Eliot confused. "Though I - think so. I want to think so, anyway. That there might be a someone, but who knows."

[fawnthefae]

Fawn nodded in understanding.

"It is strange, yes? This instinctive need to... Pair? Join. Sometimes I feel it strongly, then sometimes I do not feel it at all. Sometimes I am with John and I wish he would never leave, sometimes I wish he'd go. Then I'm alone, and it is same. I am content, then lonely. Fin must always be with people. Always. He only blooms with others, but I like being with just me sometimes. Sometimes I love me alone."

[eliot_thespectacular]

"No... I understand," said Eliot.

After all, he'd been married before.

"But I think there is something in between loneliness and being... paired."

[fawnthefae]

"Yes? What is it?" Fawn asked, his voice nearly a whisper. He spoke as though they were sharing secrets.

[eliot_thespectacular]

There was something quite nice too about that voice.

"Connection," he said, quietly too just because of how Fawn was speaking. "But more fleeting, I suppose."

[fawnthefae]

Fawn nodded a little.

"Connection, yes. Maybe."