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Church Source 16
It's not overly hard to start the fire up, or for Claude to instruct Dimitri in doing so. It's not long before it's crackling, and Dimitri has something to feel proud about again.
Claude, meanwhile, looks up at the ceiling, thinking of the water tank. "We should probably avoid any more baths after this until it rains again, at the very least. Rinsing off is fine, but bathing uses a lot of water and the tank's not infinite."
--
From where he's still crouched in front of the fire, feeling relieved that he has yet another little skill to add to his mind, Dimitri glances up and nods quietly. He can understand that well enough. "Then, I will be sure to be not as rough with you." No more sex for Claude. He's decided.
--
As much as Claude regrets that decision, he has to admit it's the right one. He needs to be recovered for a lot of riding before they leave, after all. "Don't worry," he says with a wink. "We can still do other things."
--
"Nothing else either," he says, although it will really be up to the gods and also if Claude is attractive in any way whatsoever. Which means he's basically doomed. His tail swishes along the floor. "Do you want help with anything else while this heats?"
--
"Why nothing else?" Claude frowns at him. Sorry, Dimitri, other subjects are on hold right now. "It wouldn't be anything that could hurt me..."
--
He doesn't know how they got here, honestly, and Dimitri has to pause as his brain makes itself backtrack. "It's..." His shoulders rise up a little bit, almost embarrassed. No, definitely embarrassed. "...I am worried... I do not know how to hold back around you."
--
Claude considers this, tapping a finger to his chin. Then he grins. "I could always tie you up..."
--
Dimitri blinks at him. "Is... that a normal thing, when it comes to sex?" Ah, to be innocent.
--
"I don't know if I'd call it normal, but it's definitely not unheard of, either." Claude winks at him. "It depends on if you're into it."
--
"....I have no idea." He only recently understood how nice it could feel to have a handjob and then sex, kinks are advanced territory. Dimitri shakes his head. "Still, you're that interested even in your state...?"
--
"I mean, at this particular minute? Maybe not. But I'm sure I will be sometime tomorrow." Claude laughs. "I don't want to not have any kind of sex at all before we leave."
-
Dimitri can't help but squint at Claude. "...Were you always this... this... interested in sex before? I couldn't tell at all when you were visiting me."
--
"First of all, this is a completely normal amount of interested in sex," Claude says archly. "Especially when I've just gotten a really hot boyfriend after admiring him for months. Second of all, I was interested in you before but we didn't exactly have the freedom to do anything, so I wasn't going to come onto you much while you were in your cage. And third of all, it would have been kind of ghoulish to focus on my being attracted to you while you were locked up and miserable, you know? Especially after we'd just been reunited after years. It was there, but it wasn't the main focus of anything, so it was on the back burner."
--
"People regularly engage in sex days in a row?" Yes, he'll focus on that... at least to start with, as he reaches over to lightly tug Claude over to him in order to rest his face into his shoulder.
--
"Some people have it every night," Claude laughs, "although it's by no means a set standard. Basically, you should have sex as often as you feel like it and can find someone to have it with you. If that's once a week, then I can live with that easily enough...but personally, I might like it a little more often."
--
"I do not think your legs will continue function as they properly should if you have actual sex more than once a week." Or maybe even more than once a month. Dimitri still has to figure out the logistics of that. He nudges his nose against Claude's neck. "But I am willing to experiment if that is what you're interested in. It seems I have much to learn as it is."
--
Claude turns his head to nip teasingly at Dimitri's earlobe. "To be fair, that might actually not be true. I'm not sure if you could knot me every night without it being detrimental, sure, but I couldn't take the knot of that toy without being incredibly uncomfortable at first. But over time, I got accustomed to it. Enough that while I might've been a little sore the next day, it didn't really hinder me much. I might never get as used to something as big as you are quite that much, but the more we have sex, the more my body's going to get used to taking you. And, as a direct result, the less severe the reaction will be. So holding off too long might actually be worse than doing it more often, because my body will stop being used to it..."
--
Oh, that's- new. Dimitri jolts a little bit at the strange new sensation. His ears have had plenty of hits, in the context of the execution ring... but those have been a lot more painful. This is so slight, dulled even further by Claude's teeth, that the pain is a little different. It's... almost a little warm? Or maybe that's just Claude's own breath. He can't tell, just yet.
He tries to drag his mind away from all of that, instead focusing again on Claude's words. Which... also turns out to be a slight mistake, because the warmth that had jolted through him at that bite only seems to grow as Claude describes taking him. He shifts against Claude, moving his head to squint at him.
"...I understand, so please stop describing it now."
--
Claude winks at him again, saucily. "Oh, am I getting you worked up?" he asks innocently. "Sorry." He doesn't sound it. Or look it.
-
Okay, you know what... Huffing, Dimitri picks Claude up by his middle and rises up to his feet while carting his lover up with him to hold him at arms length distance. "Please sound more genuine. You only just now said that you aren't interested in doing things right now."
--
Okay, why is it so hot when Dimitri manhandles him? Claude thinks he might have some kind of issue. (In his head, he can almost hear Sylvain characterizing it as "being a born bottom", and it's a shame that it's only his head's projection of Sylvain because he can't tell his own brain to shut up.) Externally, he simply grins at Dimitri while he's held up in the air; it's a bit like Dimitri's attempting to discipline him like a misbehaving cat. And, while Claude isn't consciously aware of it(but would love the comparison if he was), his grin is like the cat purring while it's lectured.
"I did say I'm not interested in sex, but when did I ever say I wasn't interested in teasing you...?"
--
Dimitri's tail does a single annoyed swipe from side to side, lightly smacking against the tub in the process. It feels as though the ocean of Claude's mischievousness never ends. "What are you going to do if I get excited?" he asks accusingly. "I thought you said you wanted to clean on your own, but it seems as though you're more interested in testing me."
--
"I might just use my hand on you again." Claude winks yet again. "Or my mouth."
--
There is something about Claude winking that is just... bad. Terrible. Dimitri's tail thrashes again even as he presses forward, all up until he can press Claude's back into the walls of the cabin. This makes it easier for him to adjust his own grip, one hand effortlessly pressing against his shoulder while the other slips its claws just past the waistband of his pants.
His words come out a low annoyed growl. "Or you could cease speaking."
--
Claude laughs, not particularly intimidated. (Or, at least, not intimidated in a bad way. There's some definite fluttering in his stomach, but the kind he enjoys.) "Sorry, sorry, I'll stop pushing my luck. You're just really fun to tease, y'know?"
--
"I maintain that you think that way about every other person," Dimitri huffs, even as he continues to work on tugging down Claude's pants. "You've lost privileges, now."
--
"Privileges to what?" Claude asks, with a raise of his eyebrow. He assumes Dimitri is undressing him for the bath; he seems too huffy to be willing to give in on anything sexual, even if either of them were genuinely looking for that.
--
Honestly, Claude has him nailed once again, although it's never as though Dimitri is hard to read. Once the pants are off, he just continues his annoyed cat owner carry of Claude. "Privileges to clean." Because that's a privilege. Apparently.
--
"So what, you're going to bathe me?" Claude is deeply amused. This would be humiliating if anyone else was watching...but since it's just them, he can just appreciate the entertainment of this attitude.
He's been a little worried up until now that Dimitri was too indebted to him, too in awe of him, too in love with him. That Dimitri's perspective of him is skewed, and could be unhealthy. This is comforting him immensely on that point. This level of exasperation is practically Lorenz-worthy, and Lorenz could probably win prizes for how unimpressed he generally is with Claude. If Dimitri can look at him like this, treat him like this when Claude is being a brat...then their relationship is much more likely to be well-adjusted.
--
"I didn't mean that kind of clean." Pausing by the tub, he squints down at it to gauge if he could get away with it being ready before deciding otherwise. Annoyed that he might be with his lover's teasing, he's not going to make him suffer.... Even as he goes to put him down underneath the showers.
"There are still some things from dinner that need to be cleaned up, aren't there? Someone has to be responsible for it, and you're having too much teasing me to, clearly."
--
"We were interrupted by me teaching you how to make fire," Claude counters. "I can't be out there and in here at the same time."
--
"You interrupted yourself," Dimitri argues, staying standing with his arms crossed. "Now you have to live with the consequences of what happens when you tease others recklessly." And that consequence is.... not being allowed to clean up dinner.
This is an incredibly dumb argument that Dimitri is taking extremely seriously, but he hasn't noticed that yet.
--
"Oh, woe is me," Claude says dramatically, leaning back against the wall. "My boyfriend is sick of my nonsense already, and we've barely started dating..."
--
"You know exactly what you did," Dimitri says solemnly. "You could stop at any time if you wished."
--
"It's true," Claude agrees, throwing a melodramatic arm over his eyes. "But instead I've alienated the most important person in the world to me..."
Is he angling to soften Dimitri with this act? Probably. Mostly he's just being a ham, but he wouldn't complain about any additional benefits to the performance.
--
And dammit. Dammit. It works, to Dimitri's quiet frustration. He's only been roughly twenty four hours with freedom, and thus twenty four hours to enjoy Claude with nothing barring their relationship now, not like in the cage. He tries to stay stern, eye narrowed, but....
The line is a hook right into his heart, and he relents to sink down besides Claude with his ears lowering. "Claude, you know very well I am still here..."
--
Claude immediately moves that arm covering his eyes to wrap around Dimitri, pulling him closer so he can kiss him. "And you know very well I'm joking," he replies, grinning. "Two can play at this irresistibly cute game, you know."
Which...implies he thinks Dimitri is being irresistibly cute like this, which is certainly flattering. Probably unexpected, but flattering.
--
Dimitri permits the pull, sighing against Claude's mouth as they kiss. "You are certainly irresistibly something," he murmurs, even if a part of him is pleased at the lowkey compliment woven in Claude's words.
"You are terrible like this. We're never going to get anything clean, the cabin or yourself, if you are like this." Both in his brattiness, and in being, well. Irresistible.
--
Claude pats Dimitri's cheek. "Don't worry, I'm getting cold. Soon I'll be begging you to put me in the tub, if only so I can warm up."
--
"I took off your pants, I expect you should be cold." Dimitri shakes his head and gets up again. "You're ridiculous."
--
"I know." Claude grins up at him. "But you love me."
--
"Of course. Always." Dimitri softly huffs, trying not to smile and failing quite a bit. "Now either work like you said you would or let me handle it." And he doesn't need much of an opportunity to steal to do the latter.
--
"You want me to work while naked?" Claude has just pulled off his shirt, making this a true statement. "I thought when you pulled my pants off, that meant we were putting off any more cleanup until we'd bathed."
--
"No, I was going to shove you into the bath to make you...." Dimitri flexes the claws on one hand through the air uselessly. "Stop." Just stop, in general.
"...And you had a shirt on, until just now." So that's Claude's own fault.
--
"Oh, so cleaning while naked from the waist down is acceptable?" Claude's eyes sparkle. "I'm going to remember that later, you know."
--
Dimitri freezes, realizing that he absolutely just implied that. And then he realizes something else too as he narrows his eye and points at Claude. "No. No. Cease. I am not getting distracted by your charms and wiles once more."
--
Claude laughs. "Going to put me in the tub for a time out now?" he teases. Oh, don't throw him into that briar patch. He is, as he warned Dimitri, getting cold. Going into increasingly warm water isn't going to be a punishment.
--
"Yes." And that's exactly why he's reaching forward again. Come here, Claude.
--
Exactly as planned. Claude wraps his arms around Dimitri's shoulders, all but helping his boyfriend pick him up, and tries not to seem too smug. This is somewhat difficult.
Really, how is he supposed to resist teasing when it's this rewarding?
--
Honestly. Dimitri is pretty sure he's been had in some way, huffing as he carts Claude upwards, but he supposes it's this or drawing out more bickering. The water isn't nearly heated up enough, but it's definitely not freezing cold as far as he can tell. "How will I ever survive you?" he mutters, lowering Claude into the water.
--
"You've survived much worse than me," Claude counters with a smirk, even as he sucks in his breath at the water. It's not nearly warm enough for his tastes; he miscalculated a bit there.
--
Dimitri gives a sage nod at that sudden inhale. "Time out tub," he says, trying to pull away. "It's what you've earned, Claude."
--
Claude makes a wordless noise of protest, clinging to Dimitri as the warmest thing around right now. "I thought you were getting in with me."
--
His lover is truly too cute... But cuteness won't win him everything. Dimitri begins to patiently work one of Claude's arms off of him. "I never said that. It would not be a time out tub if I went in with you, Claude."
--
"You said you'd join me if I wanted." Claude gives him a suspicious look. "Did you lie to me, Dimitri?"
--
"I did not say when I would join you, so no, I am not a liar." He flicks the sloppy braid Claude is sporting. "I am still honest."
--
"You tricked me," Claude accuses, well aware of the hypocrisy but willing to use it as long as it's convenient to do so. He hates being cold.
--
"You have used trickery at least four times in this conversation," Dimitri accuses right back, prying Claude's arms off of him. "Now hush. It will grow warmer in time."
--
"That sounds fake," Claude challenges. "Name them."
--
"Claude. The cabin still needs to be cleaned! I will name them when I get back."
--
"What else needs to be done, besides the food you already put away and the...what I will generously call leftovers that I already threw out?" Claude rests his arms on the lip of the tub.
--
"We used plates," Dimitri protests. Well. A plate. Sharing food has its benefits, apparently. "There was a fork. Those need to be cleaned."
--
"And they can't wait?" Claude raises an eyebrow.
--
Dimitri slowly and pointedly looks over Claude's extremely attractive bare body lounging in the tub. "No," he says after a moment. "Because I am concerned how long I would put them off, with you existing as you are."
--
That earns a grin from Claude. "Well, hurry up, then," he says languidly, resting his head on his arms.
--
"I'd be done by now if not for you!" Well, both of them, really. Dimitri supposes he is also just as bad when it comes to this particular instance. Still, he does hurry out, tail swishing behind him. At least he already has experience with cleaning up after a meal, thanks to the two they've had prior. It really doesn't take long at all, with him ducking back in to use water in the washroom, before he's returning properly and undoing his own pants.
"Do you feel better now?" he asks, observing Claude.
--
Claude, for his part, has moved to where the water is warmest, almost directly above the fire itself. "A little," he says with deliberate mournfulness, feigning a shiver. He considers adding a sneeze to gain further sympathy, but then decides that'd veer too much into making Dimitri feel genuinely distressed and guilty. He wants to mess with him, not hurt him.
--
"I told you it was punishment," Dimitri says, hanging his pants to the side before he goes to join him. He tests the water with one fingertip, not finding it that bad at all. Then again, as Claude might have noted, Dimitri is the type who doesn't seem to have a problem taking a dip in freezing cold lake water, so.
"I'm not going to be much warmer when I join you, you know."
--
"You think I just want to use you for your heat?" Claude gives him a wounded look. "I'm hurt. Maybe I just want to be close to the guy I love..."
Or, you know, maybe it's both. Claude doesn't feel the need to point that out.
--
"It's a warning, not a judgment of your character," Dimitri says simply, stirring water in Claude's direction. "You might get colder. Wet fur isn't exactly as warm as it is dry."
He is trying to watch out for his overdramatic boyfriend, after all.
-
"Maybe being cold is worth it if I get to curl up with you," Claude says gallantly, although he suspects in practice he'd kick Dimitri out of bed for cold toe beans. Okay, not really, but he'd consider it.
--
The good news is the height difference will keep Claude from feeling cold toe beans. Congrats on your size kink working out for you in unexpected ways, Claude.
Dimitri shakes his head slightly, even as he's smiling softly. "You don't get to regret it when I come in," he tells him, placing one foot in experimentally.
--
"I'm never going to regret anything that ends up with you naked," Claude replies, even as he admires Dimitri. Really, he lucked into one of the hottest guys he's ever seen - Intseh, human, or otherwise.
--
"That's what you say now." Unlike Claude, the water temperature seems to satisfy Dimitri, and he slowly begins to get into the opposite end of the tub so that he doesn't send the water sloshing everywhere from the sudden inclusion of a much larger body. Well, opposite as much as he can with Claude huddling over the fire pit.
Dimitri raises an eyebrow as his tail flops into the water. "It may be a tight fit if you continue to stay right there, Claude."
--
Claude, in response, immediately slides over to Dimitri, settling himself against the man's side. Maybe the body heat is negligible, but Claude wasn't lying just to make himself look good about wanting to curl up with Dimitri. He's quickly growing addicted to being settled against his lover - be it carrying, snuggling, or anything in between. "I'm more than okay with tight fits," he replies, with a sly wink.
--
"And that is how you came to have a limp," he informs his lover matter of factly, adjusting the two of them to better fit into the tub so that he can stretch his legs out as much as he can in a space not made for an Intseh and also, in turn, pull Claude a little further onto his body. His arm stays curled around him, keeping the two of them close.
Still.... He wishes they didn't have to run away so soon from all of this. He wishes he could keep it, accept it, even as much as he knows he'd always eventually look back to the church with a longing for their blood on the ground.
Thinking of the future always fills his mind with knots, with things he can't truly visualize and things he's scared to, so Dimitri breathes out and focuses on Claude's weight against him. "...You'll feel better, when you go swimming tomorrow."
--
Claude chuckles, pleased that he didn't have to point Dimitri at that innuendo for him to spot it. He's probably a bad influence, corrupting someone so earnest like this...but he can't really regret it. He settles himself more or less sidestraddle over Dimitri's lap, head resting on his shoulder.
"Tomorrow, huh?" Claude smiles. "Nothing like cold lake water to look forward to, I guess...but it'll be nice to have you teach me."
--
"You'll like it once you adjust to the temperature," Dimitri promises him. "It will feel good for your legs. You don't weigh as much in water as you do in air, so the pressure will be lifted." That might mean more floating than actual swimming... but either one is fine by Dimitri's estimation. Whatever makes Claude happier to be in the water.
--
"You must like swimming a lot, yourself." Claude glances at him. "I'm surprised you still remember how, after all those years in the church never getting to."
--
"I suppose I never forgot..." Just one of many things he didn't realize he still had a hold onto, no matter how far he was from his home, no matter how restricted the church kept him. Dimitri settles further back against the tub. "It felt a little strange, when I first got into the lake... but I kept adjusting to things that simply felt... right. Like talking to you in Intsehli."
--
Claude smiles. "I guess that's fair. I never forgot Almyran, and I've barely spoken it with anyone since I was dragged into the church."
--
"I imagine they would not have cared to hear it from you far more than me with Intsehli..." His finger begins to rub along Claude's stomach. "You truly are amazing, with your memory for language, and words in general."
--
"I just had the opportunity to read a lot." Claude makes a contented little noise. "Granted, nothing about Intsehli, I had to go learn that from the source because obviously the church didn't have any of that kind of reading material...but a lot of the other stuff I've learned, I learned from hours and hours of hiding in libraries with books. It's not like I had any friends to distract me...and other kids couldn't hassle me somewhere they'd get yelled at for being loud or disturbing other, more important people. Safe and informative."
--
"I am wholly unsurprised to hear that you managed to find a situation which benefited you in two entirely different ways." Dimitri smiles a little bit, reaching up and around Claude to start carefully undoing his braid if he hasn't done so already. "I suppose the church never could have imagined giving you so much access to so much information could have gone badly for them."
---
"I assume they figured that me learning things made me more of a loyal parishoner and less of an Almyran, as though Almyrans have never learned anything just because they like to fight." Claude smirks. "Or as though none of the things they have in their books are things Almyrans might have to learn, too. Most knowledge is secular, but I wasn't going to be the one to point that out to them."
--
"I am fairly certain you have not pointed out a great deal to them." Some of it because it doesn't fit Claude's plans, and some of it because of the reasons that have lead to him needing plans in the first place. If things could be solved so easily with pointing out the atrocities they're committing....
Dimitri focuses again on the feel of Claude's skin. "With your appetite, you likely ran out of books before your hunger for information was ever sated."
--
That's certainly a new one, and Dimitri seems surprised at the assessment. "Do you think so...? That I would learn so quickly?" Dimitri doesn't really have a lot to compare himself to, not just yet. While he may have been doing well in picking up the skills that Claude has been offering him.... He only assumes it's because they're such basic life skills, of course even someone like him could do it.
--
"You're obviously plenty smart. But more than that, you had even fewer distractions than I did, and I think you'd have killed for the diversion." Claude runs fingers along his jaw. "You really don't give yourself enough credit, though."
--
"I hardly know how much credit I should." Experimentally, he lifts one arm out of the water, trying to gauge how much warmer the water has gotten since they both got in together. "After all... I have almost everything to learn."
--
"You're doing fine so far, even with that handicap. That should tell you enough." The water is definitely warmer; it's almost starting to be comfortable for Claude.
--
"I learned how to clean dishes, Claude." He snorts into his hair. "I merely want to learn more... until I'm a bit more satisfied."
--
"You've learned a lot of new things. How to ride a horse, how to care for a horse, how to put on a bridle, how to cut up food, how to cook, how to start a fire..." Claude prods him. "See? This is exactly what I mean about selling yourself short."
--
"I...." Claude really has just gotten him here, and Dimitri reaches up to grab his finger with an embarrassed flick of his ears. "I still want to learn more, regardless."
--
"Nothing wrong with learning more, but don't knock how much progress you've already made just because the church pushed your starting line so far back." Claude smiles as he watches Dimitri's ears. They really communicate almost more than his face does.
--
"If I use that argument, then it feels as though anything is a large amount of progress...." He sinks down against Claude, running his thumb along his knuckles. "And then it feels.... too cheap? I don't know if that makes sense."
--
"No progress is cheap." Claude kisses his jaw. "Especially for you. Think about what you had to do just to be able to get to make it."
--
"Living, mainly." Dimitri turns his head, trying to catch that kiss again with his own lips. "Which certainly feels like a lot...."
--
"Under the conditions the church kept you, it absolutely was."
--
There's that wary, exhausted smile. "An accomplishment, then." But it's bath time, not time for another mental crisis, and Dimitri hugs Claude close. "Feeling better now?"
--
"Mm." Claude closes his eyes again. "Shouldn't I be asking you that?"
--
"I can't complain." Dimitri in fact won't complain, just hoard everything inside himself until he breaks down. That may happen a lot, at varying intervals and intensities, in the coming future. "But you were making a production out of being in the bath, so I wanted to check."
--
Claude chuckles. "You know I was just messing with you."
--
"It was still not entirely warm." Another nuzzle into Claude's hair. "And you complain about the cold even when you are not messing with me."
--
"True," Claude agrees. "But since the water's only getting warmer, I'm not going to be less happy than I was before."
--
"Good. Because, even when you are irresistible, and insufferable, and do not know when to stop teasing... I want you to be happy."
--
Claude chuckles. "All I need for that is you." It's the kind of thing one might say as casual flirtation, so it surprises him a little how serious it feels when it comes out of his mouth.
--
Exactly as before, Dimitri can't help that warm flutter of energy that goes through him, that simple little bit of happiness that has him smiling into Claude's hair. It's not enough to banish the emotional exhaustion that's been a result of this entire day, especially in the last hour... But it makes it not ache as much. Dimitri's standards are low; that's all he asks for.
"Which is why you'll swim in cold lake water."
--
Claude groans quietly. "Just take advantage of my loving you, why don't you..." It's obviously an idle complaint.
--
"You'll thank me." He gently strokes Claude's side. "When we get to the islands and it's warmer... You'll appreciate swimming." Everyone appreciates swimming. He's pretty sure that's just common knowledge, or at least it feels like the sort of thing that should be. Perhaps another relic from his childhood.
--
Claude grins. "I guess that's fair...and I can always enjoy looking at you while you're mostly undressed, since I don't think Intseh wear much in the way of clothes to swim." He pulls away enough from Dimitri to wink up at him. "And I can enjoy you looking at me while I'm mostly undressed."
--
"I enjoy looking at you at all times." His hand draws upwards, swiping water along Claude's hair.
--
Claude jumps a little as the still-dry parts of himself abruptly become wet, and tries to burrow further into Dimitri to leech more warmth in retaliation. "Why am I still being punished?"
--
Dimitri snorts. "You said the water was better, now. You can't try and be dramatic about it now."
--
"The water's only warm if you stay in it," Claude complains. "My head can't stay underwater, Dimitri."
--
"It's not that cold even when it is in your hair." Indulgently, Dimitri draws him even closer, cheek to chest.
--
"Speak for yourself, you've got fur to keep you warm," Claude says sullenly, although he lets himself be mollified by the cuddling.
--
"I would say that my predicament is worse than yours because I have fur, in fact." Still, he'll fall silent and sink a little further into the water for Claude's benefit, even if that means his legs stick out of the tub awkwardly. Dimitri will do a lot for the one he loves.
--
"It's not all wet, though." And to illustrate, Claude cups some water in one hand and splashes it on Dimitri's far shoulder, where the fur is still dry.
--
There's a small noise of protest. "This is exactly why you were placed into the time out tub."
--
"Oh, so you don't like it either?" Claude gives him a sly sidelong look.
--
"I told you that I hate wet fur..." His ears are flicked back now, matching his annoyed expression. "It's entirely different."
--
"And I told you I hate cold," Claude replies smugly. "How's it different?"
--
"Water dries on skin faster than it does fur!" Dimitri seems to be lowering himself further into the water, at least on the upper body front. Soon Claude won't have that bastion of warm fur to cuddle up against if he doesn't stop him. "It is very different."
--
Claude whines. "I can't lean on you if you're completely underwater, Dimitri!"
--
"Wet fur is bad. I have told you this multiple times, so now you only have yourself to blame. There are consequences for your actions, Claude."
--
Claude pulls away from Dimitri, eyeing him speculatively. Dimitri has just enough time to start getting suspicious of this when Claude swipes his arm across the surface of the tub, drenching Dimitri's entire head.
Then he smirks. "That cuts both ways, you know?"
--
At least the suspicion had prepared him for something terrible happening. He hadn't known what, but Dimitri had known it would be something. So he doesn't wildly spasm when the water sudden sweeps over him, just jerk. With water pouring down his head, Dimitri stares blankly at Claude.
"...I am never having a bath again. It is never to be trusted."
--
"And swimming is?" Claude grins, even as he sinks down in the water until his chin is actually submerged.
--
"Yes." Dimitri begins to pull back his legs, determined to leave Claude bereft of him on his side of the tub. Clearly lines must be drawn. "You have done something horrible to me every time I have had a bath. No more." That this is just twice is... listen.
--
"I forget, what was horrible the first time?" Claude is clearly amused.
--
Dimitri doesn't verbally answer. All he does is narrow his eye, and reach up to cover his poor ears with both hands.
--
Claude bursts out laughing and almost gets a mouthful of tub water. "That was horrible? That's like a quintessential life experience!"
--
You know what, he loves Claude, but he deserves that mouthful. Dimitri is fully curled up on his side of the tub now, awkward a fit as that might be. "It's a wretched life experience. Who decided that?"
--
"Everyone who's ever had a sibling or a friend when they were a kid. Though it probably helps if they don't have claws." Claude grins at him. "C'mon, lighten up."
--
"I'm never taking a bath with you again." In other words, he refuses the suggestion to lighten up. In fact, Dimitri even begins to crawl out. "Terrible."
--
"Dimitriiiii." Claude reaches out, catching Dimitri's retreating tail and tugging on it - very lightly. "You're really gonna abandon me?"
--
Dripping water into the tub as he stands there, Dimitri shakes his head. "You were too busy teasing me to take a bath, I thought."
--
"I can multitask," Claude protests.
--
"...That is a terrible defense."
--
"But it's honest." Claude grins. "Would you prefer I lie to you?"
--
Dimitri's mouth scrunches up, fulll of exasperation. "...You are terrible." Slowly, he lowers himself back into the tub, but this time to stretch out and put Claude on the bottom now instead of him being the tub seat all the time. "Can you go a single day without bothering someone?"
--
"Maybe if I was dead," Claude replies flippantly, running a hand idly along one of Dimitri's legs draped over him, fingers combing through the wet fur. It's got an interesting texture underwater.
--
"This is why Wyvern eats your hair." No, Wyvern is just like that, but still. Dimitri wiggles into the water again, ears flat. He's trying not to whine, but it's hard. "I think more water got into my ears...."
--
Claude laughs. "Don't worry, I've never heard of anyone dying from that."
--
"So as long as I do not die, then it's fine if you torment me unceasingly."
--
"You could always torment me back, you know." Claude grins at him. "That's what most of my friends do."
--
For a perfectly blank eyed second, Dimitri just stares at him. Basic socialization has taken him a few months, and he feels as though there's still even more to learn. This is.... "...No?"
--
Claude bursts out laughing at that simple, baffled refusal. He couldn't explain just what it is about the tone that gets him, but it does. He has to sit up more so he doesn't actually get a mouthful of tub water for real.
--
"Claude, don't choke." It's chiding, but of the affectionate sort. "This was only meant to be a simple bath, and yet you constantly keep making it worse. Often for yourself."
--
"See? You don't even need to get revenge for my teasing. I'm self-punishing for your convenience." Claude gives him a charming smile, tossing his head a bit to flick hair away from his eyes.
--
"And then I'll help you out of your self-punishment, when you do too much because of your insatiable urge to tease." He shifts one foot, wiggling the beans against Claude.
--
Claude laughs, even as he moves his hand to idly explore getting to touch Dimitri's feet for the first time. "I love your paw pads," he says offhandedly, rubbing his thumb over the smooth pad of a toe. "I've always kind of wondered why humans don't have them."
--
"I would imagine the lack of fur has something to do with it, but I cannot really say for certain." He has his toes go still, letting Claude poke around where he likes.
--
"I feel like Intseh definitely won out over humans in the hands and feet department." Claude lazily trails a finger lightly over the large pad beneath the toes, wondering if Intseh are ticklish like humans are.
--
"I believe you're saying that-" His foot gives a small jerk, surprised, and Dimitri pauses to blink down at it. It's been... a long time since he's been tickled. "...As I was saying, you're perhaps biased with how much you like them being used on you."
--
Interesting and promising. Claude immediately repeats what he just did, trying to provoke that reaction again. "No, I've thought it ever since I was a little kid. You guys get claws, and padded feet; you've got built-in weapons, and you can climb trees way easier than a human if you care to, you can land lighter, you walk so soft that you can barely be heard...there's all kinds of advantages to being built like an Intseh. Whoever designed humanity really should have copied some of the work done on you guys."
--
"Our claws may be helpful for martial matters, and tree climbing, but there is something to be said for having much more dull nails such as yours. So many things are so much easier with the kind of dexterity available-" His foot jerks again and he frowns. "What are you doing?"
--
Claude grins, and begins tickling Dimitri's foot. "Experimenting~," he says in a singsong voice.
--
"That's not-" But he doesn't finish his words, giving a startled snarl and outright yanking his foot out of Claude's grasp. "Stop that!"
-
Claude laughs. "Okay, okay. I was just wondering if Intseh are ticklish, too..."
--
It's not easy. It's definitely not comfortable. But now, for all his troubles, Claude gets to see Dimitri curl up into a massive furry lump on the opposite end of the tub.
"...It was a mistake to not leave the bath the first time."
--
Claude chuckles and slides across the tub to settle beside Dimitri, running a soothing hand over his shoulders. "I'm sorry. I promise, no more tricks." He pauses, then adds, "For the rest of the bath, anyway."
--
All he gets is that sulking one eyed stare, and Dimitri refuses to uncurl. "I will be amazed at your restraint if you can manage it."
--
"Have I ever made you a promise I haven't kept?" Claude asks, smiling at him.
--
"....No..." Dimitri huffs, unwrapping one hand from around his legs so that he can adjust his tail in the water. "It will still help if you can manage to lay down and relax, as this bath was meant to do. The water invigorated you far too much."
--
"Honestly, I just wanted to lighten you up. You're too serious, you know? And you got so down before." Claude slides his arm around Dimitri. "So I guess I was pushing the fun and silliness a little hard."
--
A moment of silence, and then Dimitri leans into Claude, head turning to sigh into his hair. "...I.... did get that bad...."
--
Claude reaches up to comb fingers through Dimitri's hair. They're wet, but since Dimitri got soaked recently that's not as much of an issue as it might have been. "I know it's rough. But that's not all it's going to be, you know? It's going to be fun, too. And scary. And silly. And exciting. It's going to be...well, everything. Don't get so hung up on the bad parts that you forget all the other stuff there will be, too."
--
Tilting his head into Claude's fingers, Dimitri closes his eye. "How do you keep from getting caught up? There's just... so much. Is it because it is all new to me? That I cannot help it?"
--
"I think that's a big part of it. You've got every reason to be overwhelmed right now, and that isn't necessarily a good feeling. Also, anyone who's ever had to fight just to survive knows that you end up pushing down less critical things, like emotions, until you're out of danger. Until you can afford luxuries like that." Claude keeps stroking his hair absently, looking at nothing. "You've been enduring, surviving, for decades. It won't be too surprising if, even though by this point you're free, now is when you start really processing all the feelings it gave you. You didn't have the chance before. That's why you see soldiers go into shock after battles, but not during them."
--
"It's so tiring...." The uncurl is happening properly now, Dimitri slowly shifting his arms to wrap around Claude and hold him close. Everything is so tiring. If he could go to sleep in the tub again, he thinks he'd be happier. At least knowledge is something, and he has more than he did before. "I don't know how I am going to focus on one thing at a time like this..."
--
"I'll help you. With everything." Claude's other arm goes around Dimitri. "For instance...part of focusing on one thing at a time is focusing on one moment at a time. You don't have to worry about the far-flung future...or even tomorrow. Just deal with what's happening right now. Plans are my specialty anyway." This last is said with a hint of amusement.
"But if looking at the road ahead of you is too daunting...that's when you look down at your feet, and just keep putting one foot in front of the other. There's an old saying among my people - 'every step is a new horizon'. Loosely translated, of course. In Almyran, there's a bit more nuance. The gist of it is that, no matter where you're standing, that's someone else's horizon. And every step you take shows you a new horizon, because the horizon isn't a fixed destination. It's just how far you can see. And with every step, your horizon changes, and you can see just a little bit further." He smiles at Dimitri. "Think about the horizon you can see now, and the horizon you saw just a couple days ago. You've come that far already. So don't be afraid of the road ahead, or how much ground you've got to cover. Just focus on walking, and the view will keep changing."
--
Claude is going to find himself slowly, slowly, being pushed back towards the opposite end of the tub again, if only because Dimitri's uncurl means he is starting to lay against him with his feet stretching back away from his body and his body as a whole is resting on his. Like a cat trying to lay on top of their person. "....It's a good saying. It seems your people have a lot more to them than they are given credit for." Granted, all Dimitri knows on that front is what Claude told him, but still.
It's a nice saying.
--
Claude chuckles. "Oh, believe me, Almyra's got its good points, even if its tendency to force lethal martial engagements for fun has...definitely given us a bad name." At this point, Dimitri's kind of using Claude's entire chest as a pillow, which Claude doesn't mind. He can't be the one getting held all the time. "It's not as hostile as it seems, really...at least not from an Almyran perspective. Almyrans have a pretty different take on death than other people."
--
"On death...." Not just fighting, but death in general. For a second, the water drenching his face and resting along his hands doesn't feel right, and Dimitri buries his face further into Claude's chest for a brief moment. It's just an onslaught of bad memories made too real, too overwhelming for a moment. His horns bump against Claude's body for a second with how much he's burrowing, but it doesn't last long. Maybe back in his cage, this would have spiraled out of control.... but the warmth of the water all around him, the confines of the tub, Claude, is enough to help anchor his mind. After a second, he glances back up again.
"What is it?"
--
"Well, remember that I'm viewing all this as an outsider." Claude smiles with an indescribable look in his eyes - bitter amusement, regret, and a sort of helpless resignation all blended into an emotion with no real name. "I was too young for anyone to have talked to me much about death before I got taken in by the church, and brought up knowing only their values. But from what I understand, your average Almyran raised in our culture...they don't really have a concept of what we'd call the fear of death. To them, there just doesn't seem to be a point. No amount of things like avoiding war, or being afraid, has ever stopped people from dying, so to them it just seems ridiculous. Death will come for you whenever it wants, whatever you do, in its own time and not yours.
"In a way, they view death as the ultimate opponent - an enemy that can be fought off temporarily, but never defeated. That's why Almyrans are happy to fight anyone, including each other; it's not their neighbors, or even their own people, who they're really fighting. What they're really challenging is death itself. And win or lose, live or die...Almyrans celebrate." Claude smiles a bit at this. "Why mourn death? Why treat it as special? Everyone does it. Instead, celebrate life. Celebrate holding off death for one more day."
Claude's arms tighten slightly around Dimitri. "I admit, I can't...entirely relate to them. I was raised too differently. But...I wish I could. Even if I don't necessarily agree with their border incursions or the casualties, I have to admit that the philosophy has its appeal."
--
Against his back, he can feel the way those arms draw in closer around him, seeking some sort of comfort, some sort of thing that he can belong to, belong with. Dimitri... can understand that. There is so much in the world, in life, that he cannot understand, but he can understand this.
He can't change what's been done to either of them, a fact both him and Claude have addressed. But... In the now. In the horizon they can both see. Dimitri reaches up, running his fingers up along Claude's hair.
"We can still celebrate life, even if not in their way," he says quietly, rubbing his thumb over Claude's wet curls. "We've been celebrating today, haven't we?"
--
"I do not know any songs, unfortunately." A pause. "....I think I may know a nursery rhyme, but that is not particularly festive, I think."
--
"Oh?" Claude smiles. "I'm still interested in hearing it. It's not like I know any Intsehli nursery rhymes."
--
"Let's see.... I believe it roughly goes...." Dimitri wiggles against Claude, making himself comfortable, before he starts.
"An Intseh well-known and well-read
is famous for having once said
how sweet it would be
to die for country.
How dumb- what's sweet when you're dead?"
He pauses, rolling over the short rhyme in his head now that he's said it aloud to the first person in.... ages. "I remember it annoying older Intseh- even if they were only teenagers- whenever it was sang about. So it was likely only sang about more for that reason." Even in an intellectual type of race as the Intseh, with their cultural inclination towards philosophy, well. Children are children, and sometimes that's saying things you know will annoy others or start them arguing with each other.
"There was another that I believe was a little less antagonistic."
--
Claude laughs. It might be a naive sentiment even among the Intseh - not that children's rhymes should be expected to be insightful in any case - and also at odds with a lot of Almyran beliefs, but it's nonetheless amusing. Besides, Claude likes learning new things regardless of the actual content. "And how's that one go?"
--
"Hold on.... Let me see if I have it right. I didn't remember it as clearly as the more annoying one." A pause and then Dimitri makes a face. "Why." His mind is truly a pain in the ass in more ways than he ever truly gave it credit for, and he gave it a lot of credit. Still, he kneads his claws against Claude's back a few times, clearly in rhythm with what he's trying to remember, before he recites.
"I wandered a bit in the wood
Two paths appeared equally good
One of them nicely packed sod
The other largely untrod
Does it make a difference? It should."
--
Claude hms thoughtfully at that, hand idly rubbing Dimitri's back. "Less humorous, but I like it better." He smiles down at Dimitri. "I do know some Almyran songs, for my own part, if you'd like to hear one."
--
"I mean, if I didn't want to, I just wouldn't have offered," Claude laughs. "But yeah, Almyrans actually love music. A lot of it's pretty loud and energetic, but the song I remember from when I was little - as opposed to any songs I've made a point of learning since - was one my mother used to sing to me, as a lullaby." His eyes soften a little. "She had a beautiful voice. It's sad, but I remember that better than her face now." Then he shakes his head, chuckling, as if driving away any lingering sentiments. "Anyway, even this song can be energetic, depending on the singer and the instruments, but...it wasn't the way she sung it. Or the way I've always sung it to myself since, trying to keep it with me."
He's quiet for a moment, composing his thoughts, and then begins to sing. Dimitri's never heard what Almyran sounds like before; this is certainly a dramatic way of being introduced to it. Perhaps Claude's habit of singing the song to himself, and thus his years of practice, have given him a good voice and a extremely skilled way of singing it; whatever the case, even without understanding a single word, it's genuinely beautiful.
--
Dimitri stays quiet- not only because it's Claude, and it's so important to just listen to the other for him, but because... it really is beautiful. He can't remember, not exactly, the music of his own home. The church's hymns were distant, hated. But this..... This is more beautiful than anything else he's heard, so much so that it practically stuns him.
All he can do is lay there, ears focused completely towards Claude, and listen.
--
It's not a particularly slow song, so it doesn't take Claude too long to finish singing - probably less time than Dimitri might like. But he does draw out the last lines, floating the notes through the air - and, if Dimitri is watching Claude's face, he'll get to see the schemer shorn of his schemes, his insincerity, and perhaps even his awareness that anyone is watching him. There's just a soft, distant look, as though Claude is looking back across the decades to another version of the music he's singing, trying to pierce the veil drawn over his memories to see the face of the singer again.
--
There are some things that shouldn't be interrupted. Dimitri knows this from experience. It felt like, whenever he tried to mourn, tried to comfort himself, there was never any privacy and there was never any relief. When he tried to remember, there was always interruptions. It left him feeling as though everything he could remember, everything he could be, would fall through between his fingers and the church always tried to shake his hands for even more to be lost.
After so long... He doubts Claude will remember anymore than what he already does. Still, he stays quiet, letting his lover have what moment he can while he quietly commits that face to memory himself. His arms tighten subtly around the man, the only anchor he offers for the time being.
--
That seems to stir Claude a bit all in itself, though. But he seems to shrug off whatever mood's come over him, or whatever reaction he's having, as a conscious choice rather than as something Dimitri's presence has forced on him, giving another - barely perceptible - shake of his head before looking down at Dimitri with a smile. "Like it?"
There's the faintest hint of anxiousness in his eyes. This song is deeply important to him; he wants Dimitri to have liked it, to a degree not even Claude can entirely disguise.
--
When he gives him such honest looks like that... Dimitri wants to cherish them as if they were holy relics, tuck them away where no other person can find them, can scratch or damage them. At first, he can only give a mute nod, unable to tear his eye away. Speech comes a moment after, when the ache in his chest has abated enough.
"It was heart rending. My only regret is that I know not the words, and even that does not take away from its beauty."
--
Claude laughs a little. "Did I make it sound that sad...? That said, I could always teach you the words...although honestly, sometimes songs actually sound more beautiful when you don't know what the singer is saying."
--
"Perhaps it was not the sound." Just... a shared longing between them. Still, Dimitri continues forward, not wanting Claude to dwell on it too much.
"I would like to know more Almyran regardless. One day... We would go there anyway, wouldn't we? Ah-" He frowns. "Thinking too far ahead..."
--
"Well, you don't need an excuse to want to learn the language anyway." Claude grins at him. "I know your language, and I taught you a bit of the Fodlan language...I was lucky in that I grew up speaking both it and Almyran. It's only fair that you come to know some of mine."
--
"Then that is.... Two languages I will be learning at the same time." Dimitri suspects that is more than is recommended. Or normal. Oh well. There's nothing normal about his situation. Although... He frowns a little to himself. "Perhaps even three, technically..."
--
"It's up to you how much you want to take on," Claude says soothingly. "But for the moment, don't worry about it. If you want to learn a word, whichever language it is, then I'll teach you. If you want to learn how to say a specific thing, I'll teach you. That's simple enough, right? It's not like we have the time or resources to just sit you down to study, so that's all the learning will end up being."
--
"The problem with that is that I want to learn many words." Dimitri blinks up at Claude, and his tail can be seen lazily floating along in the water. "So you will be bothered continuously, I think."
--
"Oh?" Claude grins. "Fitting vengeance for my teasing, do you think?"
--
"I believe it might only be vengeance if you ever get tired of it. So we will see if I can find that limit."
--
"Are you implying you're tired of my teasing?" Claude attempts to imitate the expression Dimitri wears when his ears droop. "Already?"
--
Alright, you know what, just.... No. Dimitri reaches up to press his palm against one of Claude's cheeks. "Your teasing is why you got put into the time out tub in the first place and you know it."
Is he ever going to stop saying such a ridiculous phrase with such a straight face? Who knows.
--
Claude laughs. "Are you really going to keep calling it that?" Dimitri's hand is wet, but Claude leans into the touch anyway. "But if I tease you all the time, and you're tired of my teasing, doesn't that mean you're tired of me?"
--
"It is what it is." And it's also not important compared to what Claude says next, earning a frown. "Of course it doesn't. You're more than your teasing." His thumb rubs along Claude's cheek. "And even if I do get tired of it, that doesn't mean it will be a permanent feeling."
--
Claude grins. "I know. That was teasing, too." Very gentle teasing, mind you. "Did you want to stay in here awhile longer, or are you ready to sleep?"
--
"I don't like that kind of teasing." With that, he rests his head against Claude's chest again. The feeling of wet fur is something he's going to have to get used to a lot with things like this. "And the bath was never for me. You tell me when you want to get out."
--
"Well, I guess I might be a little worried," Claude hears himself saying, which comes as a surprise to him because he didn't consciously vet those words coming out of his mouth and he's usually quite selective in both what he says and how he says it. Maybe the bath's relaxed him too much...or maybe Dimitri's honesty is contagious. Or maybe that pang in his chest from Dimitri's stated dislike of that last round of teasing was actually conscience.
Either way, now that he's already compromised, he might as well commit. So he forges ahead like he always meant to have this conversation. "After all, everything about our relationship up until the last 24 hours involved you being in a cage - my literal captive audience. You didn't have any other options for company, and definitely didn't have any choice. Now that you're free, you've got options. Who's to say that it won't turn out that I'm not really what you want? That the only real reason you liked me was because I was your only option? I might genuinely wind up just being an annoyance to you, eventually...once you meet people who don't tease you all the time."
He laughs a bit, trying to downplay the genuine worry behind his words. "I mean, not like I'm looking for reassurance or anything. It's not like I'd want you to keep being my friend if that wasn't what you wanted. But it'd be kind of a downer to find out years after the fact that you only found me tolerable because you were stuck with me."
--
You know.... Dimitri isn't too surprised that it's all like this. Even how it's all spilling out like this, tumbling from Claude's lips.
It's been a long time since he's played with friends properly, since he's been teased or teased others in turn. Yet... He knows words. Knows that the things people say have to have a basis in something. A lot of the time, those somethings are emotions, for better or worse. With the church, for example, he knows so much of the things they've said to him have a basis in fear, in hatred, in ignorance. A lot of Claude's teasing has had basis in just things that have happened, ridiculous traits of Dimitri's or himself or whatever nonsense they're doing taken to the extreme....
But getting tired of him? For his teasing? That.... it hadn't seemed right. Had seemed cruel, in some way, that Dimitri still doesn't care for. He knows Claude has called him biased over any negative traits being attributed to him, and maybe that's true, but that hadn't been about him in particular. It had been about them.
So he listens quietly, listening to the way Claude's heart jolts in surprise and then flutters afterwards, carrying honesty where his lover might not otherwise show. He waits, just to make sure that Claude is done, before speaking up. "It would be alright if you did. If you wanted reassurance." Because there's a difference between 'wanting' and 'looking'. Dimitri thinks he understands that, now, free of his cage where he'd convinced himself to never look but never quite to stop wanting.
--
"Not really," Claude says, with another short laugh that's more meant to bring a specific - and calculated - lightness of mood to the conversation than it is to express any actual levity. Claude's certainly not feeling any. "For one thing, how could you possibly promise me something neither of us can know? Only time can tell, as far as that goes. And what kind of reassurance could you offer me, anyway? Would you promise to stay with me even if you do find me genuinely irritating later on? Is that something I'm entitled to demand? Even if it was, it's not exactly something I'd want. What reassurance I might want can't be offered, and the only kind you could offer isn't something I have any right to ask you for...and wouldn't do me any good."
--
Even if Claude is trying to make this conversation light again, that's something that can only be done if both party's really agree to it. Dimitri doesn't- not yet, anyway. He listens to everything Claude says, which is logical in a way he can't really argue against.... but he's not arguing against any of that.
He pushes himself up, slowly, so that he can look properly into Claude's face instead of tucking away against him. He even tilts forward, bumping their foreheads together. "Who said that was the only kind I could offer?" he asks quietly, curling his hand so his knuckles and not his fingers or claws can brush along Claude's side. "It's true I do not know the future, being no seer. I shouldn't make to you such shallow promises. But this entire time, you have talked of your negative qualities, of how I would get sick of your teasing. I mean what I said: that is only one part of you. Would you say that of any other part of you? Your passion towards what is right. Your drive for knowledge. Your kindness.
"I cannot promise you the future, nor an entitlement. But I can promise you that I love you now, and for many reasons that far outweigh the trivial annoyance I only occasionally feel at your teasing. Perhaps, although I can never imagine it, there is a future where your teasing makes me leave." He tilts his head for a fleeting kiss. "But perhaps there is a future where I stay for your passion and your cleverness and how you shine. So please remember that as well, when you worry."
--
Claude closes his eyes when Dimitri rests their heads together - not just because of any comfort or relaxation he feels, but because he feels perhaps a bit too vulnerable to have someone looking directly into his eyes when he's being this honest. But Dimitri's words do relax him somewhat, and he smiles. More so when Dimitri kisses him. "Not a bad counterpoint," he murmurs, with something much closer to actual levity. "Especially for a man who wanted to be asleep...what, an hour ago?"
He cracks an eye open to peek at Dimitri. "I think I'm ready for bed if you are, now. Even if it means freezing as soon as we get out of the water."
--
"In my defense, I wanted to be asleep for far less physical reasons." His brain just hates him, but fortunately, right now, can be directed in so many different directions. It's frustrating on some level, but it also means he can bounce back a little bit right. If only it was a stable personality trait instead of experiencing everything all at once. Still, Claude's right, and Dimitri starts to push himself out.
"....I could get dry much quicker if you let me shake," he points out, stepping out so that he can get the towels quickly for him and Claude.
--
Claude sighs, as if this is a heavy imposition. "Fiiine...but I'm not getting out until you do." And he sinks down so his mouth is barely above water level again.
--
Dimitri at least has the good sense to tuck the towels away out of the firing radius.... and then there's the sound of fur smacking through the air and water droplets hitting literally everything in a fairly good approximation of an indoor rain storm. After a couple of seconds, Dimitri peeks over the edge of the tub with a quietly satisfied look on his face.
Yeah, he still likes this better than a towel.
--
Claude chuckles at that pleased look on Dimitri's face, rising out of the water. "All finished?"
--
"Yes." As soon as Claude has risen enough, Dimitri wraps the towel around him. "It feels better to do it that way."
--
Claude puts his hands on Dimitri's shoulders as he gets out of the tub, using him for support. "Aside from you redistributing the water on you to everything around you instead, I have to admit it's pretty cute."
--
"This is the room where people wash themselves anyway. More water around should not be too large a problem, as long as I make sure to keep the clothing and towels stored out of the way." With Claude safely out of the tub with his own towel, Dimitri does some clean up on what a shake couldn't rid him of.
-
Claude rubs himself down in the meantime, grinning at Dimitri as he watches him. "I mostly object when I'm one of the things you redistribute the water to, really."
--
"So all I have to do is warn you, then." Dimitri patiently waits for Claude to finish up before he begins to move out of the washing area and back into the rest of the cabin. He doesn't bother putting on pants, instead heading straight to the bed where he waits on the edge for Claude.
--
Claude doesn't bother putting on any clothes of his, either, aside from carrying his out of the bathroom and over to where he'll be able to reach them easily enough the next morning. He grins when he notes the sex toy sitting nearby, before moving over to the bed - still limping, but somewhat less after that warm soak - to wrap his arms around Dimitri's shoulders, leaning in to plant a kiss on his forehead. "Let's get some sleep."
--
In turn, Dimitri wraps his arms around Claude, hauling him as gently as he possibly can manage into the bed. He sleeps better like this, sleeps sprawled out with his lover held close against him, instead of curled up in a tight ball. Dimitri hadn't realized how much nicer it could be.
"Then, I'll greet you in the morning," he murmurs into Claude's hair, already closing his eyes and partially asleep. His body was just waiting for the opportunity, apparently.
--
Claude reaches down and manages to snag the blankets enough to pull them over the both of them. Dimitri's still damp, but between the blankets and the body heat - not to mention the residual warmth from the bath - it's not particularly unpleasant, and Claude is still comfortable. He closes his eyes as he snuggles into Dimitri's fur; it's a bit like falling asleep on a wet towel, only worlds softer, and he's done that before when he's been particularly tired. "Night, Dimitri," he murmurs. "Love you."
--
There will still be no words that will make his heart flutter as hard as those two little ones will, and he sighs softly. "I love you." They're the last words he remembers to mumble out before sleep takes him. Takes both of them.
Claude, meanwhile, looks up at the ceiling, thinking of the water tank. "We should probably avoid any more baths after this until it rains again, at the very least. Rinsing off is fine, but bathing uses a lot of water and the tank's not infinite."
--
From where he's still crouched in front of the fire, feeling relieved that he has yet another little skill to add to his mind, Dimitri glances up and nods quietly. He can understand that well enough. "Then, I will be sure to be not as rough with you." No more sex for Claude. He's decided.
--
As much as Claude regrets that decision, he has to admit it's the right one. He needs to be recovered for a lot of riding before they leave, after all. "Don't worry," he says with a wink. "We can still do other things."
--
"Nothing else either," he says, although it will really be up to the gods and also if Claude is attractive in any way whatsoever. Which means he's basically doomed. His tail swishes along the floor. "Do you want help with anything else while this heats?"
--
"Why nothing else?" Claude frowns at him. Sorry, Dimitri, other subjects are on hold right now. "It wouldn't be anything that could hurt me..."
--
He doesn't know how they got here, honestly, and Dimitri has to pause as his brain makes itself backtrack. "It's..." His shoulders rise up a little bit, almost embarrassed. No, definitely embarrassed. "...I am worried... I do not know how to hold back around you."
--
Claude considers this, tapping a finger to his chin. Then he grins. "I could always tie you up..."
--
Dimitri blinks at him. "Is... that a normal thing, when it comes to sex?" Ah, to be innocent.
--
"I don't know if I'd call it normal, but it's definitely not unheard of, either." Claude winks at him. "It depends on if you're into it."
--
"....I have no idea." He only recently understood how nice it could feel to have a handjob and then sex, kinks are advanced territory. Dimitri shakes his head. "Still, you're that interested even in your state...?"
--
"I mean, at this particular minute? Maybe not. But I'm sure I will be sometime tomorrow." Claude laughs. "I don't want to not have any kind of sex at all before we leave."
-
Dimitri can't help but squint at Claude. "...Were you always this... this... interested in sex before? I couldn't tell at all when you were visiting me."
--
"First of all, this is a completely normal amount of interested in sex," Claude says archly. "Especially when I've just gotten a really hot boyfriend after admiring him for months. Second of all, I was interested in you before but we didn't exactly have the freedom to do anything, so I wasn't going to come onto you much while you were in your cage. And third of all, it would have been kind of ghoulish to focus on my being attracted to you while you were locked up and miserable, you know? Especially after we'd just been reunited after years. It was there, but it wasn't the main focus of anything, so it was on the back burner."
--
"People regularly engage in sex days in a row?" Yes, he'll focus on that... at least to start with, as he reaches over to lightly tug Claude over to him in order to rest his face into his shoulder.
--
"Some people have it every night," Claude laughs, "although it's by no means a set standard. Basically, you should have sex as often as you feel like it and can find someone to have it with you. If that's once a week, then I can live with that easily enough...but personally, I might like it a little more often."
--
"I do not think your legs will continue function as they properly should if you have actual sex more than once a week." Or maybe even more than once a month. Dimitri still has to figure out the logistics of that. He nudges his nose against Claude's neck. "But I am willing to experiment if that is what you're interested in. It seems I have much to learn as it is."
--
Claude turns his head to nip teasingly at Dimitri's earlobe. "To be fair, that might actually not be true. I'm not sure if you could knot me every night without it being detrimental, sure, but I couldn't take the knot of that toy without being incredibly uncomfortable at first. But over time, I got accustomed to it. Enough that while I might've been a little sore the next day, it didn't really hinder me much. I might never get as used to something as big as you are quite that much, but the more we have sex, the more my body's going to get used to taking you. And, as a direct result, the less severe the reaction will be. So holding off too long might actually be worse than doing it more often, because my body will stop being used to it..."
--
Oh, that's- new. Dimitri jolts a little bit at the strange new sensation. His ears have had plenty of hits, in the context of the execution ring... but those have been a lot more painful. This is so slight, dulled even further by Claude's teeth, that the pain is a little different. It's... almost a little warm? Or maybe that's just Claude's own breath. He can't tell, just yet.
He tries to drag his mind away from all of that, instead focusing again on Claude's words. Which... also turns out to be a slight mistake, because the warmth that had jolted through him at that bite only seems to grow as Claude describes taking him. He shifts against Claude, moving his head to squint at him.
"...I understand, so please stop describing it now."
--
Claude winks at him again, saucily. "Oh, am I getting you worked up?" he asks innocently. "Sorry." He doesn't sound it. Or look it.
-
Okay, you know what... Huffing, Dimitri picks Claude up by his middle and rises up to his feet while carting his lover up with him to hold him at arms length distance. "Please sound more genuine. You only just now said that you aren't interested in doing things right now."
--
Okay, why is it so hot when Dimitri manhandles him? Claude thinks he might have some kind of issue. (In his head, he can almost hear Sylvain characterizing it as "being a born bottom", and it's a shame that it's only his head's projection of Sylvain because he can't tell his own brain to shut up.) Externally, he simply grins at Dimitri while he's held up in the air; it's a bit like Dimitri's attempting to discipline him like a misbehaving cat. And, while Claude isn't consciously aware of it(but would love the comparison if he was), his grin is like the cat purring while it's lectured.
"I did say I'm not interested in sex, but when did I ever say I wasn't interested in teasing you...?"
--
Dimitri's tail does a single annoyed swipe from side to side, lightly smacking against the tub in the process. It feels as though the ocean of Claude's mischievousness never ends. "What are you going to do if I get excited?" he asks accusingly. "I thought you said you wanted to clean on your own, but it seems as though you're more interested in testing me."
--
"I might just use my hand on you again." Claude winks yet again. "Or my mouth."
--
There is something about Claude winking that is just... bad. Terrible. Dimitri's tail thrashes again even as he presses forward, all up until he can press Claude's back into the walls of the cabin. This makes it easier for him to adjust his own grip, one hand effortlessly pressing against his shoulder while the other slips its claws just past the waistband of his pants.
His words come out a low annoyed growl. "Or you could cease speaking."
--
Claude laughs, not particularly intimidated. (Or, at least, not intimidated in a bad way. There's some definite fluttering in his stomach, but the kind he enjoys.) "Sorry, sorry, I'll stop pushing my luck. You're just really fun to tease, y'know?"
--
"I maintain that you think that way about every other person," Dimitri huffs, even as he continues to work on tugging down Claude's pants. "You've lost privileges, now."
--
"Privileges to what?" Claude asks, with a raise of his eyebrow. He assumes Dimitri is undressing him for the bath; he seems too huffy to be willing to give in on anything sexual, even if either of them were genuinely looking for that.
--
Honestly, Claude has him nailed once again, although it's never as though Dimitri is hard to read. Once the pants are off, he just continues his annoyed cat owner carry of Claude. "Privileges to clean." Because that's a privilege. Apparently.
--
"So what, you're going to bathe me?" Claude is deeply amused. This would be humiliating if anyone else was watching...but since it's just them, he can just appreciate the entertainment of this attitude.
He's been a little worried up until now that Dimitri was too indebted to him, too in awe of him, too in love with him. That Dimitri's perspective of him is skewed, and could be unhealthy. This is comforting him immensely on that point. This level of exasperation is practically Lorenz-worthy, and Lorenz could probably win prizes for how unimpressed he generally is with Claude. If Dimitri can look at him like this, treat him like this when Claude is being a brat...then their relationship is much more likely to be well-adjusted.
--
"I didn't mean that kind of clean." Pausing by the tub, he squints down at it to gauge if he could get away with it being ready before deciding otherwise. Annoyed that he might be with his lover's teasing, he's not going to make him suffer.... Even as he goes to put him down underneath the showers.
"There are still some things from dinner that need to be cleaned up, aren't there? Someone has to be responsible for it, and you're having too much teasing me to, clearly."
--
"We were interrupted by me teaching you how to make fire," Claude counters. "I can't be out there and in here at the same time."
--
"You interrupted yourself," Dimitri argues, staying standing with his arms crossed. "Now you have to live with the consequences of what happens when you tease others recklessly." And that consequence is.... not being allowed to clean up dinner.
This is an incredibly dumb argument that Dimitri is taking extremely seriously, but he hasn't noticed that yet.
--
"Oh, woe is me," Claude says dramatically, leaning back against the wall. "My boyfriend is sick of my nonsense already, and we've barely started dating..."
--
"You know exactly what you did," Dimitri says solemnly. "You could stop at any time if you wished."
--
"It's true," Claude agrees, throwing a melodramatic arm over his eyes. "But instead I've alienated the most important person in the world to me..."
Is he angling to soften Dimitri with this act? Probably. Mostly he's just being a ham, but he wouldn't complain about any additional benefits to the performance.
--
And dammit. Dammit. It works, to Dimitri's quiet frustration. He's only been roughly twenty four hours with freedom, and thus twenty four hours to enjoy Claude with nothing barring their relationship now, not like in the cage. He tries to stay stern, eye narrowed, but....
The line is a hook right into his heart, and he relents to sink down besides Claude with his ears lowering. "Claude, you know very well I am still here..."
--
Claude immediately moves that arm covering his eyes to wrap around Dimitri, pulling him closer so he can kiss him. "And you know very well I'm joking," he replies, grinning. "Two can play at this irresistibly cute game, you know."
Which...implies he thinks Dimitri is being irresistibly cute like this, which is certainly flattering. Probably unexpected, but flattering.
--
Dimitri permits the pull, sighing against Claude's mouth as they kiss. "You are certainly irresistibly something," he murmurs, even if a part of him is pleased at the lowkey compliment woven in Claude's words.
"You are terrible like this. We're never going to get anything clean, the cabin or yourself, if you are like this." Both in his brattiness, and in being, well. Irresistible.
--
Claude pats Dimitri's cheek. "Don't worry, I'm getting cold. Soon I'll be begging you to put me in the tub, if only so I can warm up."
--
"I took off your pants, I expect you should be cold." Dimitri shakes his head and gets up again. "You're ridiculous."
--
"I know." Claude grins up at him. "But you love me."
--
"Of course. Always." Dimitri softly huffs, trying not to smile and failing quite a bit. "Now either work like you said you would or let me handle it." And he doesn't need much of an opportunity to steal to do the latter.
--
"You want me to work while naked?" Claude has just pulled off his shirt, making this a true statement. "I thought when you pulled my pants off, that meant we were putting off any more cleanup until we'd bathed."
--
"No, I was going to shove you into the bath to make you...." Dimitri flexes the claws on one hand through the air uselessly. "Stop." Just stop, in general.
"...And you had a shirt on, until just now." So that's Claude's own fault.
--
"Oh, so cleaning while naked from the waist down is acceptable?" Claude's eyes sparkle. "I'm going to remember that later, you know."
--
Dimitri freezes, realizing that he absolutely just implied that. And then he realizes something else too as he narrows his eye and points at Claude. "No. No. Cease. I am not getting distracted by your charms and wiles once more."
--
Claude laughs. "Going to put me in the tub for a time out now?" he teases. Oh, don't throw him into that briar patch. He is, as he warned Dimitri, getting cold. Going into increasingly warm water isn't going to be a punishment.
--
"Yes." And that's exactly why he's reaching forward again. Come here, Claude.
--
Exactly as planned. Claude wraps his arms around Dimitri's shoulders, all but helping his boyfriend pick him up, and tries not to seem too smug. This is somewhat difficult.
Really, how is he supposed to resist teasing when it's this rewarding?
--
Honestly. Dimitri is pretty sure he's been had in some way, huffing as he carts Claude upwards, but he supposes it's this or drawing out more bickering. The water isn't nearly heated up enough, but it's definitely not freezing cold as far as he can tell. "How will I ever survive you?" he mutters, lowering Claude into the water.
--
"You've survived much worse than me," Claude counters with a smirk, even as he sucks in his breath at the water. It's not nearly warm enough for his tastes; he miscalculated a bit there.
--
Dimitri gives a sage nod at that sudden inhale. "Time out tub," he says, trying to pull away. "It's what you've earned, Claude."
--
Claude makes a wordless noise of protest, clinging to Dimitri as the warmest thing around right now. "I thought you were getting in with me."
--
His lover is truly too cute... But cuteness won't win him everything. Dimitri begins to patiently work one of Claude's arms off of him. "I never said that. It would not be a time out tub if I went in with you, Claude."
--
"You said you'd join me if I wanted." Claude gives him a suspicious look. "Did you lie to me, Dimitri?"
--
"I did not say when I would join you, so no, I am not a liar." He flicks the sloppy braid Claude is sporting. "I am still honest."
--
"You tricked me," Claude accuses, well aware of the hypocrisy but willing to use it as long as it's convenient to do so. He hates being cold.
--
"You have used trickery at least four times in this conversation," Dimitri accuses right back, prying Claude's arms off of him. "Now hush. It will grow warmer in time."
--
"That sounds fake," Claude challenges. "Name them."
--
"Claude. The cabin still needs to be cleaned! I will name them when I get back."
--
"What else needs to be done, besides the food you already put away and the...what I will generously call leftovers that I already threw out?" Claude rests his arms on the lip of the tub.
--
"We used plates," Dimitri protests. Well. A plate. Sharing food has its benefits, apparently. "There was a fork. Those need to be cleaned."
--
"And they can't wait?" Claude raises an eyebrow.
--
Dimitri slowly and pointedly looks over Claude's extremely attractive bare body lounging in the tub. "No," he says after a moment. "Because I am concerned how long I would put them off, with you existing as you are."
--
That earns a grin from Claude. "Well, hurry up, then," he says languidly, resting his head on his arms.
--
"I'd be done by now if not for you!" Well, both of them, really. Dimitri supposes he is also just as bad when it comes to this particular instance. Still, he does hurry out, tail swishing behind him. At least he already has experience with cleaning up after a meal, thanks to the two they've had prior. It really doesn't take long at all, with him ducking back in to use water in the washroom, before he's returning properly and undoing his own pants.
"Do you feel better now?" he asks, observing Claude.
--
Claude, for his part, has moved to where the water is warmest, almost directly above the fire itself. "A little," he says with deliberate mournfulness, feigning a shiver. He considers adding a sneeze to gain further sympathy, but then decides that'd veer too much into making Dimitri feel genuinely distressed and guilty. He wants to mess with him, not hurt him.
--
"I told you it was punishment," Dimitri says, hanging his pants to the side before he goes to join him. He tests the water with one fingertip, not finding it that bad at all. Then again, as Claude might have noted, Dimitri is the type who doesn't seem to have a problem taking a dip in freezing cold lake water, so.
"I'm not going to be much warmer when I join you, you know."
--
"You think I just want to use you for your heat?" Claude gives him a wounded look. "I'm hurt. Maybe I just want to be close to the guy I love..."
Or, you know, maybe it's both. Claude doesn't feel the need to point that out.
--
"It's a warning, not a judgment of your character," Dimitri says simply, stirring water in Claude's direction. "You might get colder. Wet fur isn't exactly as warm as it is dry."
He is trying to watch out for his overdramatic boyfriend, after all.
-
"Maybe being cold is worth it if I get to curl up with you," Claude says gallantly, although he suspects in practice he'd kick Dimitri out of bed for cold toe beans. Okay, not really, but he'd consider it.
--
The good news is the height difference will keep Claude from feeling cold toe beans. Congrats on your size kink working out for you in unexpected ways, Claude.
Dimitri shakes his head slightly, even as he's smiling softly. "You don't get to regret it when I come in," he tells him, placing one foot in experimentally.
--
"I'm never going to regret anything that ends up with you naked," Claude replies, even as he admires Dimitri. Really, he lucked into one of the hottest guys he's ever seen - Intseh, human, or otherwise.
--
"That's what you say now." Unlike Claude, the water temperature seems to satisfy Dimitri, and he slowly begins to get into the opposite end of the tub so that he doesn't send the water sloshing everywhere from the sudden inclusion of a much larger body. Well, opposite as much as he can with Claude huddling over the fire pit.
Dimitri raises an eyebrow as his tail flops into the water. "It may be a tight fit if you continue to stay right there, Claude."
--
Claude, in response, immediately slides over to Dimitri, settling himself against the man's side. Maybe the body heat is negligible, but Claude wasn't lying just to make himself look good about wanting to curl up with Dimitri. He's quickly growing addicted to being settled against his lover - be it carrying, snuggling, or anything in between. "I'm more than okay with tight fits," he replies, with a sly wink.
--
"And that is how you came to have a limp," he informs his lover matter of factly, adjusting the two of them to better fit into the tub so that he can stretch his legs out as much as he can in a space not made for an Intseh and also, in turn, pull Claude a little further onto his body. His arm stays curled around him, keeping the two of them close.
Still.... He wishes they didn't have to run away so soon from all of this. He wishes he could keep it, accept it, even as much as he knows he'd always eventually look back to the church with a longing for their blood on the ground.
Thinking of the future always fills his mind with knots, with things he can't truly visualize and things he's scared to, so Dimitri breathes out and focuses on Claude's weight against him. "...You'll feel better, when you go swimming tomorrow."
--
Claude chuckles, pleased that he didn't have to point Dimitri at that innuendo for him to spot it. He's probably a bad influence, corrupting someone so earnest like this...but he can't really regret it. He settles himself more or less sidestraddle over Dimitri's lap, head resting on his shoulder.
"Tomorrow, huh?" Claude smiles. "Nothing like cold lake water to look forward to, I guess...but it'll be nice to have you teach me."
--
"You'll like it once you adjust to the temperature," Dimitri promises him. "It will feel good for your legs. You don't weigh as much in water as you do in air, so the pressure will be lifted." That might mean more floating than actual swimming... but either one is fine by Dimitri's estimation. Whatever makes Claude happier to be in the water.
--
"You must like swimming a lot, yourself." Claude glances at him. "I'm surprised you still remember how, after all those years in the church never getting to."
--
"I suppose I never forgot..." Just one of many things he didn't realize he still had a hold onto, no matter how far he was from his home, no matter how restricted the church kept him. Dimitri settles further back against the tub. "It felt a little strange, when I first got into the lake... but I kept adjusting to things that simply felt... right. Like talking to you in Intsehli."
--
Claude smiles. "I guess that's fair. I never forgot Almyran, and I've barely spoken it with anyone since I was dragged into the church."
--
"I imagine they would not have cared to hear it from you far more than me with Intsehli..." His finger begins to rub along Claude's stomach. "You truly are amazing, with your memory for language, and words in general."
--
"I just had the opportunity to read a lot." Claude makes a contented little noise. "Granted, nothing about Intsehli, I had to go learn that from the source because obviously the church didn't have any of that kind of reading material...but a lot of the other stuff I've learned, I learned from hours and hours of hiding in libraries with books. It's not like I had any friends to distract me...and other kids couldn't hassle me somewhere they'd get yelled at for being loud or disturbing other, more important people. Safe and informative."
--
"I am wholly unsurprised to hear that you managed to find a situation which benefited you in two entirely different ways." Dimitri smiles a little bit, reaching up and around Claude to start carefully undoing his braid if he hasn't done so already. "I suppose the church never could have imagined giving you so much access to so much information could have gone badly for them."
---
"I assume they figured that me learning things made me more of a loyal parishoner and less of an Almyran, as though Almyrans have never learned anything just because they like to fight." Claude smirks. "Or as though none of the things they have in their books are things Almyrans might have to learn, too. Most knowledge is secular, but I wasn't going to be the one to point that out to them."
--
"I am fairly certain you have not pointed out a great deal to them." Some of it because it doesn't fit Claude's plans, and some of it because of the reasons that have lead to him needing plans in the first place. If things could be solved so easily with pointing out the atrocities they're committing....
Dimitri focuses again on the feel of Claude's skin. "With your appetite, you likely ran out of books before your hunger for information was ever sated."
--
That's certainly a new one, and Dimitri seems surprised at the assessment. "Do you think so...? That I would learn so quickly?" Dimitri doesn't really have a lot to compare himself to, not just yet. While he may have been doing well in picking up the skills that Claude has been offering him.... He only assumes it's because they're such basic life skills, of course even someone like him could do it.
--
"You're obviously plenty smart. But more than that, you had even fewer distractions than I did, and I think you'd have killed for the diversion." Claude runs fingers along his jaw. "You really don't give yourself enough credit, though."
--
"I hardly know how much credit I should." Experimentally, he lifts one arm out of the water, trying to gauge how much warmer the water has gotten since they both got in together. "After all... I have almost everything to learn."
--
"You're doing fine so far, even with that handicap. That should tell you enough." The water is definitely warmer; it's almost starting to be comfortable for Claude.
--
"I learned how to clean dishes, Claude." He snorts into his hair. "I merely want to learn more... until I'm a bit more satisfied."
--
"You've learned a lot of new things. How to ride a horse, how to care for a horse, how to put on a bridle, how to cut up food, how to cook, how to start a fire..." Claude prods him. "See? This is exactly what I mean about selling yourself short."
--
"I...." Claude really has just gotten him here, and Dimitri reaches up to grab his finger with an embarrassed flick of his ears. "I still want to learn more, regardless."
--
"Nothing wrong with learning more, but don't knock how much progress you've already made just because the church pushed your starting line so far back." Claude smiles as he watches Dimitri's ears. They really communicate almost more than his face does.
--
"If I use that argument, then it feels as though anything is a large amount of progress...." He sinks down against Claude, running his thumb along his knuckles. "And then it feels.... too cheap? I don't know if that makes sense."
--
"No progress is cheap." Claude kisses his jaw. "Especially for you. Think about what you had to do just to be able to get to make it."
--
"Living, mainly." Dimitri turns his head, trying to catch that kiss again with his own lips. "Which certainly feels like a lot...."
--
"Under the conditions the church kept you, it absolutely was."
--
There's that wary, exhausted smile. "An accomplishment, then." But it's bath time, not time for another mental crisis, and Dimitri hugs Claude close. "Feeling better now?"
--
"Mm." Claude closes his eyes again. "Shouldn't I be asking you that?"
--
"I can't complain." Dimitri in fact won't complain, just hoard everything inside himself until he breaks down. That may happen a lot, at varying intervals and intensities, in the coming future. "But you were making a production out of being in the bath, so I wanted to check."
--
Claude chuckles. "You know I was just messing with you."
--
"It was still not entirely warm." Another nuzzle into Claude's hair. "And you complain about the cold even when you are not messing with me."
--
"True," Claude agrees. "But since the water's only getting warmer, I'm not going to be less happy than I was before."
--
"Good. Because, even when you are irresistible, and insufferable, and do not know when to stop teasing... I want you to be happy."
--
Claude chuckles. "All I need for that is you." It's the kind of thing one might say as casual flirtation, so it surprises him a little how serious it feels when it comes out of his mouth.
--
Exactly as before, Dimitri can't help that warm flutter of energy that goes through him, that simple little bit of happiness that has him smiling into Claude's hair. It's not enough to banish the emotional exhaustion that's been a result of this entire day, especially in the last hour... But it makes it not ache as much. Dimitri's standards are low; that's all he asks for.
"Which is why you'll swim in cold lake water."
--
Claude groans quietly. "Just take advantage of my loving you, why don't you..." It's obviously an idle complaint.
--
"You'll thank me." He gently strokes Claude's side. "When we get to the islands and it's warmer... You'll appreciate swimming." Everyone appreciates swimming. He's pretty sure that's just common knowledge, or at least it feels like the sort of thing that should be. Perhaps another relic from his childhood.
--
Claude grins. "I guess that's fair...and I can always enjoy looking at you while you're mostly undressed, since I don't think Intseh wear much in the way of clothes to swim." He pulls away enough from Dimitri to wink up at him. "And I can enjoy you looking at me while I'm mostly undressed."
--
"I enjoy looking at you at all times." His hand draws upwards, swiping water along Claude's hair.
--
Claude jumps a little as the still-dry parts of himself abruptly become wet, and tries to burrow further into Dimitri to leech more warmth in retaliation. "Why am I still being punished?"
--
Dimitri snorts. "You said the water was better, now. You can't try and be dramatic about it now."
--
"The water's only warm if you stay in it," Claude complains. "My head can't stay underwater, Dimitri."
--
"It's not that cold even when it is in your hair." Indulgently, Dimitri draws him even closer, cheek to chest.
--
"Speak for yourself, you've got fur to keep you warm," Claude says sullenly, although he lets himself be mollified by the cuddling.
--
"I would say that my predicament is worse than yours because I have fur, in fact." Still, he'll fall silent and sink a little further into the water for Claude's benefit, even if that means his legs stick out of the tub awkwardly. Dimitri will do a lot for the one he loves.
--
"It's not all wet, though." And to illustrate, Claude cups some water in one hand and splashes it on Dimitri's far shoulder, where the fur is still dry.
--
There's a small noise of protest. "This is exactly why you were placed into the time out tub."
--
"Oh, so you don't like it either?" Claude gives him a sly sidelong look.
--
"I told you that I hate wet fur..." His ears are flicked back now, matching his annoyed expression. "It's entirely different."
--
"And I told you I hate cold," Claude replies smugly. "How's it different?"
--
"Water dries on skin faster than it does fur!" Dimitri seems to be lowering himself further into the water, at least on the upper body front. Soon Claude won't have that bastion of warm fur to cuddle up against if he doesn't stop him. "It is very different."
--
Claude whines. "I can't lean on you if you're completely underwater, Dimitri!"
--
"Wet fur is bad. I have told you this multiple times, so now you only have yourself to blame. There are consequences for your actions, Claude."
--
Claude pulls away from Dimitri, eyeing him speculatively. Dimitri has just enough time to start getting suspicious of this when Claude swipes his arm across the surface of the tub, drenching Dimitri's entire head.
Then he smirks. "That cuts both ways, you know?"
--
At least the suspicion had prepared him for something terrible happening. He hadn't known what, but Dimitri had known it would be something. So he doesn't wildly spasm when the water sudden sweeps over him, just jerk. With water pouring down his head, Dimitri stares blankly at Claude.
"...I am never having a bath again. It is never to be trusted."
--
"And swimming is?" Claude grins, even as he sinks down in the water until his chin is actually submerged.
--
"Yes." Dimitri begins to pull back his legs, determined to leave Claude bereft of him on his side of the tub. Clearly lines must be drawn. "You have done something horrible to me every time I have had a bath. No more." That this is just twice is... listen.
--
"I forget, what was horrible the first time?" Claude is clearly amused.
--
Dimitri doesn't verbally answer. All he does is narrow his eye, and reach up to cover his poor ears with both hands.
--
Claude bursts out laughing and almost gets a mouthful of tub water. "That was horrible? That's like a quintessential life experience!"
--
You know what, he loves Claude, but he deserves that mouthful. Dimitri is fully curled up on his side of the tub now, awkward a fit as that might be. "It's a wretched life experience. Who decided that?"
--
"Everyone who's ever had a sibling or a friend when they were a kid. Though it probably helps if they don't have claws." Claude grins at him. "C'mon, lighten up."
--
"I'm never taking a bath with you again." In other words, he refuses the suggestion to lighten up. In fact, Dimitri even begins to crawl out. "Terrible."
--
"Dimitriiiii." Claude reaches out, catching Dimitri's retreating tail and tugging on it - very lightly. "You're really gonna abandon me?"
--
Dripping water into the tub as he stands there, Dimitri shakes his head. "You were too busy teasing me to take a bath, I thought."
--
"I can multitask," Claude protests.
--
"...That is a terrible defense."
--
"But it's honest." Claude grins. "Would you prefer I lie to you?"
--
Dimitri's mouth scrunches up, fulll of exasperation. "...You are terrible." Slowly, he lowers himself back into the tub, but this time to stretch out and put Claude on the bottom now instead of him being the tub seat all the time. "Can you go a single day without bothering someone?"
--
"Maybe if I was dead," Claude replies flippantly, running a hand idly along one of Dimitri's legs draped over him, fingers combing through the wet fur. It's got an interesting texture underwater.
--
"This is why Wyvern eats your hair." No, Wyvern is just like that, but still. Dimitri wiggles into the water again, ears flat. He's trying not to whine, but it's hard. "I think more water got into my ears...."
--
Claude laughs. "Don't worry, I've never heard of anyone dying from that."
--
"So as long as I do not die, then it's fine if you torment me unceasingly."
--
"You could always torment me back, you know." Claude grins at him. "That's what most of my friends do."
--
For a perfectly blank eyed second, Dimitri just stares at him. Basic socialization has taken him a few months, and he feels as though there's still even more to learn. This is.... "...No?"
--
Claude bursts out laughing at that simple, baffled refusal. He couldn't explain just what it is about the tone that gets him, but it does. He has to sit up more so he doesn't actually get a mouthful of tub water for real.
--
"Claude, don't choke." It's chiding, but of the affectionate sort. "This was only meant to be a simple bath, and yet you constantly keep making it worse. Often for yourself."
--
"See? You don't even need to get revenge for my teasing. I'm self-punishing for your convenience." Claude gives him a charming smile, tossing his head a bit to flick hair away from his eyes.
--
"And then I'll help you out of your self-punishment, when you do too much because of your insatiable urge to tease." He shifts one foot, wiggling the beans against Claude.
--
Claude laughs, even as he moves his hand to idly explore getting to touch Dimitri's feet for the first time. "I love your paw pads," he says offhandedly, rubbing his thumb over the smooth pad of a toe. "I've always kind of wondered why humans don't have them."
--
"I would imagine the lack of fur has something to do with it, but I cannot really say for certain." He has his toes go still, letting Claude poke around where he likes.
--
"I feel like Intseh definitely won out over humans in the hands and feet department." Claude lazily trails a finger lightly over the large pad beneath the toes, wondering if Intseh are ticklish like humans are.
--
"I believe you're saying that-" His foot gives a small jerk, surprised, and Dimitri pauses to blink down at it. It's been... a long time since he's been tickled. "...As I was saying, you're perhaps biased with how much you like them being used on you."
--
Interesting and promising. Claude immediately repeats what he just did, trying to provoke that reaction again. "No, I've thought it ever since I was a little kid. You guys get claws, and padded feet; you've got built-in weapons, and you can climb trees way easier than a human if you care to, you can land lighter, you walk so soft that you can barely be heard...there's all kinds of advantages to being built like an Intseh. Whoever designed humanity really should have copied some of the work done on you guys."
--
"Our claws may be helpful for martial matters, and tree climbing, but there is something to be said for having much more dull nails such as yours. So many things are so much easier with the kind of dexterity available-" His foot jerks again and he frowns. "What are you doing?"
--
Claude grins, and begins tickling Dimitri's foot. "Experimenting~," he says in a singsong voice.
--
"That's not-" But he doesn't finish his words, giving a startled snarl and outright yanking his foot out of Claude's grasp. "Stop that!"
-
Claude laughs. "Okay, okay. I was just wondering if Intseh are ticklish, too..."
--
It's not easy. It's definitely not comfortable. But now, for all his troubles, Claude gets to see Dimitri curl up into a massive furry lump on the opposite end of the tub.
"...It was a mistake to not leave the bath the first time."
--
Claude chuckles and slides across the tub to settle beside Dimitri, running a soothing hand over his shoulders. "I'm sorry. I promise, no more tricks." He pauses, then adds, "For the rest of the bath, anyway."
--
All he gets is that sulking one eyed stare, and Dimitri refuses to uncurl. "I will be amazed at your restraint if you can manage it."
--
"Have I ever made you a promise I haven't kept?" Claude asks, smiling at him.
--
"....No..." Dimitri huffs, unwrapping one hand from around his legs so that he can adjust his tail in the water. "It will still help if you can manage to lay down and relax, as this bath was meant to do. The water invigorated you far too much."
--
"Honestly, I just wanted to lighten you up. You're too serious, you know? And you got so down before." Claude slides his arm around Dimitri. "So I guess I was pushing the fun and silliness a little hard."
--
A moment of silence, and then Dimitri leans into Claude, head turning to sigh into his hair. "...I.... did get that bad...."
--
Claude reaches up to comb fingers through Dimitri's hair. They're wet, but since Dimitri got soaked recently that's not as much of an issue as it might have been. "I know it's rough. But that's not all it's going to be, you know? It's going to be fun, too. And scary. And silly. And exciting. It's going to be...well, everything. Don't get so hung up on the bad parts that you forget all the other stuff there will be, too."
--
Tilting his head into Claude's fingers, Dimitri closes his eye. "How do you keep from getting caught up? There's just... so much. Is it because it is all new to me? That I cannot help it?"
--
"I think that's a big part of it. You've got every reason to be overwhelmed right now, and that isn't necessarily a good feeling. Also, anyone who's ever had to fight just to survive knows that you end up pushing down less critical things, like emotions, until you're out of danger. Until you can afford luxuries like that." Claude keeps stroking his hair absently, looking at nothing. "You've been enduring, surviving, for decades. It won't be too surprising if, even though by this point you're free, now is when you start really processing all the feelings it gave you. You didn't have the chance before. That's why you see soldiers go into shock after battles, but not during them."
--
"It's so tiring...." The uncurl is happening properly now, Dimitri slowly shifting his arms to wrap around Claude and hold him close. Everything is so tiring. If he could go to sleep in the tub again, he thinks he'd be happier. At least knowledge is something, and he has more than he did before. "I don't know how I am going to focus on one thing at a time like this..."
--
"I'll help you. With everything." Claude's other arm goes around Dimitri. "For instance...part of focusing on one thing at a time is focusing on one moment at a time. You don't have to worry about the far-flung future...or even tomorrow. Just deal with what's happening right now. Plans are my specialty anyway." This last is said with a hint of amusement.
"But if looking at the road ahead of you is too daunting...that's when you look down at your feet, and just keep putting one foot in front of the other. There's an old saying among my people - 'every step is a new horizon'. Loosely translated, of course. In Almyran, there's a bit more nuance. The gist of it is that, no matter where you're standing, that's someone else's horizon. And every step you take shows you a new horizon, because the horizon isn't a fixed destination. It's just how far you can see. And with every step, your horizon changes, and you can see just a little bit further." He smiles at Dimitri. "Think about the horizon you can see now, and the horizon you saw just a couple days ago. You've come that far already. So don't be afraid of the road ahead, or how much ground you've got to cover. Just focus on walking, and the view will keep changing."
--
Claude is going to find himself slowly, slowly, being pushed back towards the opposite end of the tub again, if only because Dimitri's uncurl means he is starting to lay against him with his feet stretching back away from his body and his body as a whole is resting on his. Like a cat trying to lay on top of their person. "....It's a good saying. It seems your people have a lot more to them than they are given credit for." Granted, all Dimitri knows on that front is what Claude told him, but still.
It's a nice saying.
--
Claude chuckles. "Oh, believe me, Almyra's got its good points, even if its tendency to force lethal martial engagements for fun has...definitely given us a bad name." At this point, Dimitri's kind of using Claude's entire chest as a pillow, which Claude doesn't mind. He can't be the one getting held all the time. "It's not as hostile as it seems, really...at least not from an Almyran perspective. Almyrans have a pretty different take on death than other people."
--
"On death...." Not just fighting, but death in general. For a second, the water drenching his face and resting along his hands doesn't feel right, and Dimitri buries his face further into Claude's chest for a brief moment. It's just an onslaught of bad memories made too real, too overwhelming for a moment. His horns bump against Claude's body for a second with how much he's burrowing, but it doesn't last long. Maybe back in his cage, this would have spiraled out of control.... but the warmth of the water all around him, the confines of the tub, Claude, is enough to help anchor his mind. After a second, he glances back up again.
"What is it?"
--
"Well, remember that I'm viewing all this as an outsider." Claude smiles with an indescribable look in his eyes - bitter amusement, regret, and a sort of helpless resignation all blended into an emotion with no real name. "I was too young for anyone to have talked to me much about death before I got taken in by the church, and brought up knowing only their values. But from what I understand, your average Almyran raised in our culture...they don't really have a concept of what we'd call the fear of death. To them, there just doesn't seem to be a point. No amount of things like avoiding war, or being afraid, has ever stopped people from dying, so to them it just seems ridiculous. Death will come for you whenever it wants, whatever you do, in its own time and not yours.
"In a way, they view death as the ultimate opponent - an enemy that can be fought off temporarily, but never defeated. That's why Almyrans are happy to fight anyone, including each other; it's not their neighbors, or even their own people, who they're really fighting. What they're really challenging is death itself. And win or lose, live or die...Almyrans celebrate." Claude smiles a bit at this. "Why mourn death? Why treat it as special? Everyone does it. Instead, celebrate life. Celebrate holding off death for one more day."
Claude's arms tighten slightly around Dimitri. "I admit, I can't...entirely relate to them. I was raised too differently. But...I wish I could. Even if I don't necessarily agree with their border incursions or the casualties, I have to admit that the philosophy has its appeal."
--
Against his back, he can feel the way those arms draw in closer around him, seeking some sort of comfort, some sort of thing that he can belong to, belong with. Dimitri... can understand that. There is so much in the world, in life, that he cannot understand, but he can understand this.
He can't change what's been done to either of them, a fact both him and Claude have addressed. But... In the now. In the horizon they can both see. Dimitri reaches up, running his fingers up along Claude's hair.
"We can still celebrate life, even if not in their way," he says quietly, rubbing his thumb over Claude's wet curls. "We've been celebrating today, haven't we?"
--
"I do not know any songs, unfortunately." A pause. "....I think I may know a nursery rhyme, but that is not particularly festive, I think."
--
"Oh?" Claude smiles. "I'm still interested in hearing it. It's not like I know any Intsehli nursery rhymes."
--
"Let's see.... I believe it roughly goes...." Dimitri wiggles against Claude, making himself comfortable, before he starts.
"An Intseh well-known and well-read
is famous for having once said
how sweet it would be
to die for country.
How dumb- what's sweet when you're dead?"
He pauses, rolling over the short rhyme in his head now that he's said it aloud to the first person in.... ages. "I remember it annoying older Intseh- even if they were only teenagers- whenever it was sang about. So it was likely only sang about more for that reason." Even in an intellectual type of race as the Intseh, with their cultural inclination towards philosophy, well. Children are children, and sometimes that's saying things you know will annoy others or start them arguing with each other.
"There was another that I believe was a little less antagonistic."
--
Claude laughs. It might be a naive sentiment even among the Intseh - not that children's rhymes should be expected to be insightful in any case - and also at odds with a lot of Almyran beliefs, but it's nonetheless amusing. Besides, Claude likes learning new things regardless of the actual content. "And how's that one go?"
--
"Hold on.... Let me see if I have it right. I didn't remember it as clearly as the more annoying one." A pause and then Dimitri makes a face. "Why." His mind is truly a pain in the ass in more ways than he ever truly gave it credit for, and he gave it a lot of credit. Still, he kneads his claws against Claude's back a few times, clearly in rhythm with what he's trying to remember, before he recites.
"I wandered a bit in the wood
Two paths appeared equally good
One of them nicely packed sod
The other largely untrod
Does it make a difference? It should."
--
Claude hms thoughtfully at that, hand idly rubbing Dimitri's back. "Less humorous, but I like it better." He smiles down at Dimitri. "I do know some Almyran songs, for my own part, if you'd like to hear one."
--
"I mean, if I didn't want to, I just wouldn't have offered," Claude laughs. "But yeah, Almyrans actually love music. A lot of it's pretty loud and energetic, but the song I remember from when I was little - as opposed to any songs I've made a point of learning since - was one my mother used to sing to me, as a lullaby." His eyes soften a little. "She had a beautiful voice. It's sad, but I remember that better than her face now." Then he shakes his head, chuckling, as if driving away any lingering sentiments. "Anyway, even this song can be energetic, depending on the singer and the instruments, but...it wasn't the way she sung it. Or the way I've always sung it to myself since, trying to keep it with me."
He's quiet for a moment, composing his thoughts, and then begins to sing. Dimitri's never heard what Almyran sounds like before; this is certainly a dramatic way of being introduced to it. Perhaps Claude's habit of singing the song to himself, and thus his years of practice, have given him a good voice and a extremely skilled way of singing it; whatever the case, even without understanding a single word, it's genuinely beautiful.
--
Dimitri stays quiet- not only because it's Claude, and it's so important to just listen to the other for him, but because... it really is beautiful. He can't remember, not exactly, the music of his own home. The church's hymns were distant, hated. But this..... This is more beautiful than anything else he's heard, so much so that it practically stuns him.
All he can do is lay there, ears focused completely towards Claude, and listen.
--
It's not a particularly slow song, so it doesn't take Claude too long to finish singing - probably less time than Dimitri might like. But he does draw out the last lines, floating the notes through the air - and, if Dimitri is watching Claude's face, he'll get to see the schemer shorn of his schemes, his insincerity, and perhaps even his awareness that anyone is watching him. There's just a soft, distant look, as though Claude is looking back across the decades to another version of the music he's singing, trying to pierce the veil drawn over his memories to see the face of the singer again.
--
There are some things that shouldn't be interrupted. Dimitri knows this from experience. It felt like, whenever he tried to mourn, tried to comfort himself, there was never any privacy and there was never any relief. When he tried to remember, there was always interruptions. It left him feeling as though everything he could remember, everything he could be, would fall through between his fingers and the church always tried to shake his hands for even more to be lost.
After so long... He doubts Claude will remember anymore than what he already does. Still, he stays quiet, letting his lover have what moment he can while he quietly commits that face to memory himself. His arms tighten subtly around the man, the only anchor he offers for the time being.
--
That seems to stir Claude a bit all in itself, though. But he seems to shrug off whatever mood's come over him, or whatever reaction he's having, as a conscious choice rather than as something Dimitri's presence has forced on him, giving another - barely perceptible - shake of his head before looking down at Dimitri with a smile. "Like it?"
There's the faintest hint of anxiousness in his eyes. This song is deeply important to him; he wants Dimitri to have liked it, to a degree not even Claude can entirely disguise.
--
When he gives him such honest looks like that... Dimitri wants to cherish them as if they were holy relics, tuck them away where no other person can find them, can scratch or damage them. At first, he can only give a mute nod, unable to tear his eye away. Speech comes a moment after, when the ache in his chest has abated enough.
"It was heart rending. My only regret is that I know not the words, and even that does not take away from its beauty."
--
Claude laughs a little. "Did I make it sound that sad...? That said, I could always teach you the words...although honestly, sometimes songs actually sound more beautiful when you don't know what the singer is saying."
--
"Perhaps it was not the sound." Just... a shared longing between them. Still, Dimitri continues forward, not wanting Claude to dwell on it too much.
"I would like to know more Almyran regardless. One day... We would go there anyway, wouldn't we? Ah-" He frowns. "Thinking too far ahead..."
--
"Well, you don't need an excuse to want to learn the language anyway." Claude grins at him. "I know your language, and I taught you a bit of the Fodlan language...I was lucky in that I grew up speaking both it and Almyran. It's only fair that you come to know some of mine."
--
"Then that is.... Two languages I will be learning at the same time." Dimitri suspects that is more than is recommended. Or normal. Oh well. There's nothing normal about his situation. Although... He frowns a little to himself. "Perhaps even three, technically..."
--
"It's up to you how much you want to take on," Claude says soothingly. "But for the moment, don't worry about it. If you want to learn a word, whichever language it is, then I'll teach you. If you want to learn how to say a specific thing, I'll teach you. That's simple enough, right? It's not like we have the time or resources to just sit you down to study, so that's all the learning will end up being."
--
"The problem with that is that I want to learn many words." Dimitri blinks up at Claude, and his tail can be seen lazily floating along in the water. "So you will be bothered continuously, I think."
--
"Oh?" Claude grins. "Fitting vengeance for my teasing, do you think?"
--
"I believe it might only be vengeance if you ever get tired of it. So we will see if I can find that limit."
--
"Are you implying you're tired of my teasing?" Claude attempts to imitate the expression Dimitri wears when his ears droop. "Already?"
--
Alright, you know what, just.... No. Dimitri reaches up to press his palm against one of Claude's cheeks. "Your teasing is why you got put into the time out tub in the first place and you know it."
Is he ever going to stop saying such a ridiculous phrase with such a straight face? Who knows.
--
Claude laughs. "Are you really going to keep calling it that?" Dimitri's hand is wet, but Claude leans into the touch anyway. "But if I tease you all the time, and you're tired of my teasing, doesn't that mean you're tired of me?"
--
"It is what it is." And it's also not important compared to what Claude says next, earning a frown. "Of course it doesn't. You're more than your teasing." His thumb rubs along Claude's cheek. "And even if I do get tired of it, that doesn't mean it will be a permanent feeling."
--
Claude grins. "I know. That was teasing, too." Very gentle teasing, mind you. "Did you want to stay in here awhile longer, or are you ready to sleep?"
--
"I don't like that kind of teasing." With that, he rests his head against Claude's chest again. The feeling of wet fur is something he's going to have to get used to a lot with things like this. "And the bath was never for me. You tell me when you want to get out."
--
"Well, I guess I might be a little worried," Claude hears himself saying, which comes as a surprise to him because he didn't consciously vet those words coming out of his mouth and he's usually quite selective in both what he says and how he says it. Maybe the bath's relaxed him too much...or maybe Dimitri's honesty is contagious. Or maybe that pang in his chest from Dimitri's stated dislike of that last round of teasing was actually conscience.
Either way, now that he's already compromised, he might as well commit. So he forges ahead like he always meant to have this conversation. "After all, everything about our relationship up until the last 24 hours involved you being in a cage - my literal captive audience. You didn't have any other options for company, and definitely didn't have any choice. Now that you're free, you've got options. Who's to say that it won't turn out that I'm not really what you want? That the only real reason you liked me was because I was your only option? I might genuinely wind up just being an annoyance to you, eventually...once you meet people who don't tease you all the time."
He laughs a bit, trying to downplay the genuine worry behind his words. "I mean, not like I'm looking for reassurance or anything. It's not like I'd want you to keep being my friend if that wasn't what you wanted. But it'd be kind of a downer to find out years after the fact that you only found me tolerable because you were stuck with me."
--
You know.... Dimitri isn't too surprised that it's all like this. Even how it's all spilling out like this, tumbling from Claude's lips.
It's been a long time since he's played with friends properly, since he's been teased or teased others in turn. Yet... He knows words. Knows that the things people say have to have a basis in something. A lot of the time, those somethings are emotions, for better or worse. With the church, for example, he knows so much of the things they've said to him have a basis in fear, in hatred, in ignorance. A lot of Claude's teasing has had basis in just things that have happened, ridiculous traits of Dimitri's or himself or whatever nonsense they're doing taken to the extreme....
But getting tired of him? For his teasing? That.... it hadn't seemed right. Had seemed cruel, in some way, that Dimitri still doesn't care for. He knows Claude has called him biased over any negative traits being attributed to him, and maybe that's true, but that hadn't been about him in particular. It had been about them.
So he listens quietly, listening to the way Claude's heart jolts in surprise and then flutters afterwards, carrying honesty where his lover might not otherwise show. He waits, just to make sure that Claude is done, before speaking up. "It would be alright if you did. If you wanted reassurance." Because there's a difference between 'wanting' and 'looking'. Dimitri thinks he understands that, now, free of his cage where he'd convinced himself to never look but never quite to stop wanting.
--
"Not really," Claude says, with another short laugh that's more meant to bring a specific - and calculated - lightness of mood to the conversation than it is to express any actual levity. Claude's certainly not feeling any. "For one thing, how could you possibly promise me something neither of us can know? Only time can tell, as far as that goes. And what kind of reassurance could you offer me, anyway? Would you promise to stay with me even if you do find me genuinely irritating later on? Is that something I'm entitled to demand? Even if it was, it's not exactly something I'd want. What reassurance I might want can't be offered, and the only kind you could offer isn't something I have any right to ask you for...and wouldn't do me any good."
--
Even if Claude is trying to make this conversation light again, that's something that can only be done if both party's really agree to it. Dimitri doesn't- not yet, anyway. He listens to everything Claude says, which is logical in a way he can't really argue against.... but he's not arguing against any of that.
He pushes himself up, slowly, so that he can look properly into Claude's face instead of tucking away against him. He even tilts forward, bumping their foreheads together. "Who said that was the only kind I could offer?" he asks quietly, curling his hand so his knuckles and not his fingers or claws can brush along Claude's side. "It's true I do not know the future, being no seer. I shouldn't make to you such shallow promises. But this entire time, you have talked of your negative qualities, of how I would get sick of your teasing. I mean what I said: that is only one part of you. Would you say that of any other part of you? Your passion towards what is right. Your drive for knowledge. Your kindness.
"I cannot promise you the future, nor an entitlement. But I can promise you that I love you now, and for many reasons that far outweigh the trivial annoyance I only occasionally feel at your teasing. Perhaps, although I can never imagine it, there is a future where your teasing makes me leave." He tilts his head for a fleeting kiss. "But perhaps there is a future where I stay for your passion and your cleverness and how you shine. So please remember that as well, when you worry."
--
Claude closes his eyes when Dimitri rests their heads together - not just because of any comfort or relaxation he feels, but because he feels perhaps a bit too vulnerable to have someone looking directly into his eyes when he's being this honest. But Dimitri's words do relax him somewhat, and he smiles. More so when Dimitri kisses him. "Not a bad counterpoint," he murmurs, with something much closer to actual levity. "Especially for a man who wanted to be asleep...what, an hour ago?"
He cracks an eye open to peek at Dimitri. "I think I'm ready for bed if you are, now. Even if it means freezing as soon as we get out of the water."
--
"In my defense, I wanted to be asleep for far less physical reasons." His brain just hates him, but fortunately, right now, can be directed in so many different directions. It's frustrating on some level, but it also means he can bounce back a little bit right. If only it was a stable personality trait instead of experiencing everything all at once. Still, Claude's right, and Dimitri starts to push himself out.
"....I could get dry much quicker if you let me shake," he points out, stepping out so that he can get the towels quickly for him and Claude.
--
Claude sighs, as if this is a heavy imposition. "Fiiine...but I'm not getting out until you do." And he sinks down so his mouth is barely above water level again.
--
Dimitri at least has the good sense to tuck the towels away out of the firing radius.... and then there's the sound of fur smacking through the air and water droplets hitting literally everything in a fairly good approximation of an indoor rain storm. After a couple of seconds, Dimitri peeks over the edge of the tub with a quietly satisfied look on his face.
Yeah, he still likes this better than a towel.
--
Claude chuckles at that pleased look on Dimitri's face, rising out of the water. "All finished?"
--
"Yes." As soon as Claude has risen enough, Dimitri wraps the towel around him. "It feels better to do it that way."
--
Claude puts his hands on Dimitri's shoulders as he gets out of the tub, using him for support. "Aside from you redistributing the water on you to everything around you instead, I have to admit it's pretty cute."
--
"This is the room where people wash themselves anyway. More water around should not be too large a problem, as long as I make sure to keep the clothing and towels stored out of the way." With Claude safely out of the tub with his own towel, Dimitri does some clean up on what a shake couldn't rid him of.
-
Claude rubs himself down in the meantime, grinning at Dimitri as he watches him. "I mostly object when I'm one of the things you redistribute the water to, really."
--
"So all I have to do is warn you, then." Dimitri patiently waits for Claude to finish up before he begins to move out of the washing area and back into the rest of the cabin. He doesn't bother putting on pants, instead heading straight to the bed where he waits on the edge for Claude.
--
Claude doesn't bother putting on any clothes of his, either, aside from carrying his out of the bathroom and over to where he'll be able to reach them easily enough the next morning. He grins when he notes the sex toy sitting nearby, before moving over to the bed - still limping, but somewhat less after that warm soak - to wrap his arms around Dimitri's shoulders, leaning in to plant a kiss on his forehead. "Let's get some sleep."
--
In turn, Dimitri wraps his arms around Claude, hauling him as gently as he possibly can manage into the bed. He sleeps better like this, sleeps sprawled out with his lover held close against him, instead of curled up in a tight ball. Dimitri hadn't realized how much nicer it could be.
"Then, I'll greet you in the morning," he murmurs into Claude's hair, already closing his eyes and partially asleep. His body was just waiting for the opportunity, apparently.
--
Claude reaches down and manages to snag the blankets enough to pull them over the both of them. Dimitri's still damp, but between the blankets and the body heat - not to mention the residual warmth from the bath - it's not particularly unpleasant, and Claude is still comfortable. He closes his eyes as he snuggles into Dimitri's fur; it's a bit like falling asleep on a wet towel, only worlds softer, and he's done that before when he's been particularly tired. "Night, Dimitri," he murmurs. "Love you."
--
There will still be no words that will make his heart flutter as hard as those two little ones will, and he sighs softly. "I love you." They're the last words he remembers to mumble out before sleep takes him. Takes both of them.