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"You don't have to feel so self conscious, you know"
Gorou looked up, startled. He let out a small laugh.
"I'm not, not really.." Gorou quickly looked down again, unable to meet Aether's level stare across the hot spring. They had been walking all day, hiking in the mountains of Yashiori Island. It was one of Gorou's favorite past times, one he hadn't been able to enjoy during the rebellion. They were lounging in a hot spring on the mountain side now, letting the warmth from the water seep into their sore muscles. Rubbing his neck, he continued,
"I just feel a bit small sometimes, next to my subordinates. Like being younger than most of them isn't awkward enough on it's own," Gorou worried his bottom lip between his teeth.
"They respect you though, you know that." Aether's voice sounded sure, confident in his assessment. He was right, of course. Gorou knew his men liked him. Knew it from when they messed around with each other during training. He knew that they trusted him, from late nights around a camp fire, not quite behind enemy lines yet, but close enough that pent up emotion started carefully spilling into the night. He was always there with them, in camp and at the front. He had seen fear and hesitation disappear from their eyes as he met them with confidence. At his command they'd thrown themselves into battle, time and time again, sharp weapons glinting in the sun. And still he couldn't help but feel like a child sometimes, next to the seasoned veterans and the bulky youngsters alike.
"And they're not here now. It's just us" The sound of Aether's voice pulled him out of his musing. It was closer this time. He had slid quietly through the water to come sit next to Gorou on the natural stone seat. The movement made the water lap at his biceps, sligtly bigger and more defined than Gorou's. It was the same with his chest, Gorou noticed bashfully, as the light from the torch above them flickered over it. He quickly tore his eyes away, afraid he'd been caught staring, and felt a blush creep up his neck.
"You don't have to feel so self-conscious." Aether eccoed his own words when Gorou couldn't bring himself to meet his eyes again.
"But.."
Gorou felt his eyes grow large as saucers, finally finding Aether's amber ones in the dim light. The hot water rippled around him from where Aether had moved in closer to put a finger over his lips.
"No "but"'s," Gorou could feel Aether's hot breath on his skin. The blush crept up from his neck and into his cheeks. His left ear twitched. Aether's thumb replaced the index finger on his lips, moving to stroke along the bottom one carefully.
"You're perfect"
Gorou saw Aether's eyes flick down, and then he was closing them, slowly leaning in even closer. He paused a hair's breadth away from Gorou, like he was inviting him to move away. When he didn't, Aether closed the gap between them with a soft press of his lips. Gorou's heart was beating like a rabbit in his chest. Aether's right hand was still on his face, carefully cupping his cheek, while his lips moved against Gorou's slowly. He leaned back to look Gorou in the eye, taking a small breath.
"Is this okay?" He asked in a low voice.
Gorou's voice caught in his throat, and he nodded instead, lifting his right arm to cover Aether's bicep with his hand. When Aether leaned in again, Gorou met him half-way. His mouth opened in a soft breath as Aether's tongue darted out to lick over his bottom lip, right where his thumb had been only a minute earlier.
Kissing Aether was nothing like what he had experienced before, Gorou decided. His first kiss had been a childhood friend, when they were both 13 and curious. It was nice, exciting, a little awkward. His girlfriend at 15 was soft and lovely, melting into Gorou like butter whenever he held her. Aether was neither awkward nor pliant. This time it was Gorou melting, feeling like his body would dissolve in the hot water as Aether licked into his mouth, only held together by the sure grip of his hands. His left one had moved to Gorou's side, and he was now stroking a thumb over his hipbone. Every time it dipped a bit towards the sensitive skin on his lower abdomen, Gorou felt sparks shoot through his body.
The kissing become more heated. Soft sighs and small, breathy moans floated over the water, mingling with the steam. It didn't take long before Gorou felt himself leaning his chest into Aether's body, almost climbing into his lap, desperate for pressure against the hardness between his legs. His thigh brushed against Aether's crotch in the process, and he could guess he wasn't faring much better. His suspicions were confirmed when Aether leaned back panting, a blush high on his cheekbones.
"Do you wanna take this back to camp?"
---
The grasshoppers chirped in the grass outside, but Gorou couldn't hear them over the sound of his own panting. He was on his back, face and neck flushed, his robe open and spread out around him. Aether was sitting back on his heels between Gorou's knees, in the process of freeing himself of his own robe. His amber eyes looked almost black as he scanned the body beneath him. Gorou covered his eyes with one arm, moving the other over his torso, unable to stand the heated gaze.
"Don't" Aether said, when he had freed himself of the fabric. He carefully pried Gorou's arms away from his body and up over his head. They were face to face now, Aether holding himself a bit over Gorou's torso with one arm, while the other pinned Gorou's wrists together above their heads. Gorou surrendered to a shiver.
"Keep them there" Aether's command was almost a whisper against his lips. He let go, and Gorou immediatly gripped them together, holding tight while Aether trailed kisses down his jaw.
"Good boy," Aether nipped at his neck. Gorou let out a soft whimper, ears twitching. He could feel Aether let out a hard breath against the underside of his jaw.
"You're adorable" he mumbled, before continuing to work on Gorou's neck. Kissing, nipping, sucking, sometimes punctuated with a harder bite. The small sounds escaping Gorou's mouth only seemed to spur him on.
"Aether, please" Gorou's whine was breathy. His nails were digging into his wrists from trying to control the involuntary jerks of his hips. Aether's hand was exploring his torso, barely reaching his pubic hair before moving away again. Teasing.
Gorou whined again. This time, Aether turned his attention away from where he was sucking a bruise into Gorou's collarbone to face him again.
"What do you need?" Aether followed the words with a few shallow kisses to Gorou's lips. "Tell me".
Gorou drew in a shuddered breath, blushing even harder. When he didn't answer, Aether ground his hips down, meeting Gorou's hardness with his own. Gorou let out a startled moan.
"This?" Aether asked, sounding a bit breathless.
He ground his hips down again, eliciting a gasp from Gorou.
"Y-Yes," Gorou tried. "I need you to-aah," He broke off into a moan again as Aether repeated his movements. "Need you to touch me," He finally got out. "Please".
Aether looked almost drunk as he captured Gorou's lips again, his hand coming down to finally wrap around Gorou's length, as well as his own. Gorou's whole world narrowed down to the feeling of Aether's hardness against him, his steady hand working up an even rythm, their breaths mingling, kisses cut off into sporadic moans. Soon they could only breathe hard into each others mouths, eyes glazing over. Aether's hand started losing it's rythm. Gorou couldn't help but jerk his hips up sporadically, desperate for more of that wonderful friction. He was close. He could feel his body starting to tense up.
"Gorou," Gorou opened his eyes to meet Aether's straight on. Blonde locks were falling like curtains over the sides of his face, some of them sticking to the sweat on his forehead. His eyes looked dazed, pupils blown, and his lips were red and swollen. Just then, Aether's face pinched up in a moan, eyebrows knitting together, and then Gorou was coming. Hard and suddenly, spilling over his own stomach and Aether's hand, still moving around them both. Gorou finally relaxed the grip on his wrists, moving his hands to cup the sides of Aether's face, pulling him down for a passionate kiss. He moved in turn to kiss Aether's cheeks, his nose, and then the crease between his eyebrows, as Aether finally stroked himself to completion as well, hips stuttering, spilling into his hand.
When Aether collapsed on top of him at last, Gorou wrapped his arms around him and buried his face in the crook of his neck. They laid there for a while, in the filtered moonlight through the tent flaps, trading lazy kisses. Neither willing to get up to clean themselves off just yet.
---
"This better not have only been an attempt to make me feel better about myself" Gorou said half jokingly the next morning, untangling himself from Aether's arms to sit up straight. Aether let out a snort, looking up at him.
"Do you really think I'm that self-less?"
Gorou only got as far as cocking an eyebrow and opening his mouth, before Aether hastily added a "don't answer that". Gorou let out a snort of his own, and leaned back on his elbows. A comfortable silence settled around them, filled only by the sounds of the birds chirping, and the soft rustling of Aether gently stroking Gorou's tail.
"Did it, though?" Aether broke the silence. A smile tugget at Gorou's lips.
"I don't think an insecurity is overcome that easily"
Aether met his eyes with a smirk.
"I guess I'll just have to try harder next time, then"
---
The End