killedwithlove | For insurgoaltus

For insurgoaltus

The next day, Cole had woken Dorian up to let him know he was heading out with the Inquisitor. She wanted to go to Emprise du Lion for a few days, which meant being kind to Dorian and leaving him behind and taking Cole instead, since he never minded the cold.

Cole, Solas and Blackwall set out into Emprise du Lion with Cadash.

They were gone for eight days. Not unusual with travel times, but they came back in poor shape. Blackwall's shield was near split in half, Solas was using his staff to aid his walking and Cole was being carried in the cart rather than walking alongside the pony and talking to her.

Cadash was bloodied and bruised and looking the best of then. Which wasn't saying much, but they'd done their jobs and kept her safe. At some cost apparently.

The scouts were saying words like 'ambush' and 'slave caravans, growing the lyrium in them even before the cart drew in through the gates and people started to clamber off.

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To be honest, Solas was harder for everyone to read now -- except perhaps Cadash.

"I do not want you to act like you are sneaking around, Cole. I am not ashamed of you." He traced a fingertip along Cole's hand. "I'm just at a loss to explain my feelings without sounding like some sort of pervert."

He laughed again, his gaze warming, "... well of course I would like you naked, Cole. I like all your inside bits. Your outside bits must be equally brilliant. Which is probably why all our friends would call me a pervert to begin with."

"No. Not ashamed. But you think people will say things and try to save me from you." He turned his hand to brush his own fingers along Dorian's wrist and palm.

"I'm not ashamed of my body. I don't know if it's interesting, or nice to look at. Why is liking a body perverted?"

"...Ye-es, that sums it up nicely. They will try to save you from me." He let his eyes fall half closed, sliding his fingers along Cole's lightly.

"It's not, when one had a healthy and respectful appreciation for it. When one respects the mind, as well as the form. I just don't know how to make them believe that I ... that my feelings for you are genuine, and not something I am making up to have my wicked Tevinter way with the 'innocent spirit'."

He looked at Cole, tilting his head. "It will take time, is all. Like you winning me over with logic. I will simply have to be respectful and you will have to be yourself - showing them that you want to have feelings, and be kissed, and sleep curled next to me and talk to me for hours about all sorts of things... and of course, when you want to be naked in front of me, you can be."

"I suppose that's what I want -- I want them to know you chose me."

"They're not very clever if they think I can't tell the difference between genuine emotion and people making believe. I know people. I know what it feels like when someone just wants sex and will say or do anything to get it."

Cole had seen it, heard it, lived it through others. He never talked about what may or may not have happened to the other Cole under the templars' not so tender care.

"I know they're genuine. So does Cadash. I don't have experience with some things, but that doesn't mean I don't know about them. And if people say anything to you, you should tell them to come to me. And I can explain why I've chosen you."

He drew Dorian's hand close enough to kiss the knuckles.

"...I wish you didn't. I wish you knew only the good parts, and not the bad ones. No one should know that sort of cruelty." Especially not from those who were supposed to be guards and guardians.

"I suppose if Cadash knows, that's all that truly matters. Hers, and yours, are the good opinions that matter the most." He thought about it, "And Cullen ... whom I might get a vicious little thrill, having him hear from you why you've chosen me."

He smiled again, eyes brightening. "Such the gentleman..."

"Life isn't always kind. Compassion is most needed when there's harshness and cruelty." Simple fact of what he was and their world.

"Cullen isn't sure what to think about me. I scare him, because of what he's lived through, but he's accepted that I'm not like those spirits, I'm different. He doesn't know I bring him the meals late at night. It helps the aches if he has food."

He pressed his smooth cheek to Dorian's hand. "Who is?"

"Well, that is ... very true. I just wish it wasn't so. Although I am glad to know compassion, once more." It seemed a long time since he had had any.

"So you're the one -- he keeps telling me to stop being a doter." Dorian's lips quirk, "Then ... perhaps all who matter, won't care at a bit."

"You are. Kissing my hand, ready to firmly guide our friends towards reason, willing to be naked for me." He arched an eyebrow, "Just who is courting who here, Cole?"

"And you'd like to know Compassion better."

Things that were never predicted to come from Cole: innuendo.

"Yes. He needs it. He forgets when it hurts and then it hurts more, so I bring him the foods that help ease it, help him sleep, or just breathe. I like Cullen."

He shrugged slightly, smiling a little. "Why does only one of us have to court?"

Now please observe both of Dorian's eyebrows raise, but two can play at this game. "Intimately, if so blessed."

His expression sobers a little at the mention of his friend's pain, and he knows he'll be share something he uses for his own lyrium potions to help ease the addiction. "So do I. Which is why we have to take care of the lummox."

"Mmm, I shall not argue it, especially when it comes in such a charming package." He smiled again, easy and brilliant. "Court away."

Cole gave a small smile and offered out both his hands. "I want to get out now, please help me."

He knew to keep the leg resting. And he wasn't confident on his ability to get out without a second leg for balance. "I like taking care of Cullen. He takes care of everyone but himself. He thinks he doesn't deserve it, but we know he does."

"Gladly - hold on." He put his book aside, and grabbed the towel, slinging it over his shoulder so he could take both of Cole's hands and pull him up carefully, his grip firm.

"Now, I've got the towel right here ... so we're going to get you out of the tub and to the chair, so we can get you dried off, all right? How's that leg?" He asked, careful not to glance down.

Cole could pull himself upright between Dorian and his good leg, standing steady on it and holding onto Dorian.

"All right. It feels better for the heat in the water." He held on tight, realising he'd need to either hop out, literally, or Dorian would have to take his weight to get him over the lip of the tub again.

"You can look down if you want."

Dorian was realizing the logistics of this, and gave out a wry little smirk of his own as he shifted Cole's hands to his shoulders. "I am glad for that ... and I am afraid I must do a little more than that, Nug."

He cleared his throat and took the towel off his own shoulder, shaking it out so he could wrap it around Cole's middle. He saw glimpses of pale skin, lean muscles and other rather interesting things, which he did enjoy very much. Then he scolded himself, and made sure to tuck the towel right at Cole's hips, before putting his arms at Cole's waist. "Hold on tight, if you would?"

And with that, he lifted Cole bodily up and with ease, moving to carry him over to the chair, carefully putting him down again. "... well that was bracing. And pleasant."

Cole quickly realised what was about to happen. The only real interest he had in the towel was stopping the water getting all over Dorian.

But if Dorian got wet, he'd have to take off his clothes.

He'd think about it.

He wrapped his arms around Dorian's neck, holding tight as he was lifted. It jostled his leg, but he stayed silent and just held on until he was on the chair.

"Thank you."

Dorian got a little ... well damp, but nothing that wouldn't dry off in a few minutes, so he didn't worry about it. He went to grab another towel, for Cole's hair and shoulders, his lips curving up.

"For a view like that? I am fairly certain I should be thanking you." He came back around, kneeling down a little, his smile warm. "Either way - let's get you dried off, and bandage up that leg, all right?"

Cole watched Dorian moving around, following him the entire time he wasn't actually with Cole. When he came back, he reached out for him again, smiling when he saw Dorian's smile.

"I told you I'm happy to be naked. I wear clothes because that's what people do. I wear armour to stop injuries, though. Armour's different. I don't need armour in here, with you."

He stretched his leg out carefully. "Don't get into bed wet either, right?"

As if Dorian could resist that smile, and he came closer, like a moth to the flame.

"Well usually if two people are going to be naked together, other things are going to happen." Dorian stated wryly, although he was still smiling. "And I am happy, that you trust me enough to be naked here - sans clothing and armor."

"Absolutely right." He lifted the other towel, draping it over Cole's head. "Go ahead and dry yourself off."

"You don't have to be naked. Clothing masked and masqueraded, hiding, hidden, holding yourself inside of them." Clothing was important to Dorian, it made statements about who he wanted to show himself to be, kept his real self safely hidden under layers.

He reached up and started to dry off his hair, then down his neck, shoulders and arms before moving to his chest.

"Dorian. Do you... not like caring so deeply that you feel like you need to look after me?"

Dorian pulled out his healing kit - a small thing compared to Solas's - glancing up at Cole. "Yes, I suppose I do. Vivienne is not wrong about clothes making the mage. I dress as I do to intimidate, and ... in some cases attract."

He shook his head a little, "Quite the opposite, actually. The more I care about you, the more I want to protect you. To make sure that you come home safe, to me. Selfish, that, but the truth. If I fuss, it means that little extra bit of precaution will keep you from getting killed." He looks sober, "If I do not seem like I take it seriously -- it's because it means that much more to me. If I pretend it doesn't matter in some ways, while fussing in others, then it evens out. I show you I love you, even when I can't say it."

Cole carefully dried around the injury purely because he'd been told to be careful with it and leaned back into the chair to watch Dorian again.

"I know you want to look after me and care about me. But... sometimes people care and they don't want to care." And he couldn't pick that out, didn't know what it would be like if it didn't hurt.

"I know how deeply your feel it, how serious it is to you," he murmured. "It might stop the ache if you pretend it doesn't matter so much."

Dorian started to mix the poultice - elfrootm naturally, with some spindleweed and crystal grace mixed in. Ground it in his bowl, and then used his fingertips to spread it along the mostly healed slice on Cole's leg.

"Ah, but then I would have to be obvious about how absolutely mad I am over you." He murmured, lifting the clean bandage to wrap around Cole's bare thigh. "For all the world to see, Dorian Pavus in love with Cole, the spirit man."

Cole started to lift his leg for the bandage, realised that he had to use his sliced thigh muscles to do that and instead slid himself forward in the chair to give Dorian space to get under his thigh.

"Most people don't call me 'man'. They call me boy, child, kid." He reached out slowly and pushed his fingers through Dorian's hair, feeling the warmth of his head.

Dorian hummed his thanks, as he made sure to get Cole's leg throughly wrapped, and then tied off with a neat, tight knot. Just enough to keep the bandage firmly in place.

"Tch, my hair." He answered softly, although he didn't stop Cole, as he leaned a little on Cole's good leg. "Most people haven't kissed you."

"Yes, your hair. It's soft and smells nice." He dropped his hand down to rub the back of Dorian's neck and

He drew Dorian up towards him so he could kiss him softly on the mouth.

"Yes, and it's usually perfectly groomed, thank you - " But whatever Dorian was going to add to that was cut off by Cole drawing him up, and to his mouth, and he had to brace his hands on Cole's hips so he could kneel between the man's legs and - well - kiss him in turn.

For insurgoaltus

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