thewidewideworld | (no subject)

{from here}

Sinric takes Athelstan's hand and leads him through an almost invisible door and down a couple of seemingly perfectly flat hallways that somehow open out onto the rooftop and a little flat terrace with a view of the eastern sky.

Sinric clearly spends some time up here because the spot is furnished with a daybed big enough to lay on or for two to sit together comfortingly and is draped with soft furry blankets of a cloth unknown in their time.

He helps Athelstan to the daybed and sits with him, setting the flask aside for now. The stars are still clear in the sky, even as dawn smudges the horizon with warmth.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

From:

thewidewideworld

"Even if it's to let me cry for days?" He tries to joke, kissing Athelstan's hand. "For I fear that's all I will be able to do."

From:

athelstanthescribe

"If crying for days will ease your grief in the long run", Athelstan says, outlining his lips with a finger, "then so be it."

From:

thewidewideworld

Sinric kisses the tip of his finger before settling again. "There is time yet. Seven months in the world before I have to face that day. Perhaps if I do some of my crying beforehand, I will be stronger when I need to be."

From:

athelstanthescribe

"Perhaps", Athelstan agrees. "And the grief must be starting to build even now, as it would for a long illness."

Edited Date: 2015-09-02 11:42 am (UTC)

From:

thewidewideworld

"Then I fear you must nurse me. For I will be sick for a long time to come." He sighs.

From:

athelstanthescribe

"Sinric." He tips Sinric's chin up to look him in the eyes. "Don't apologise, for have you not nursed me with love and dedication?"

From:

thewidewideworld

He leans in to kiss Athelstan softly, "Because I love you."

From:

athelstanthescribe

"And for the same reason", he says with intense feeling, "I will nurse you for as long as you need it, and never grudge a moment."

From:

thewidewideworld

The strength of feeling in Athelstan's voice brings tears to his eyes again and he answers it with a kiss that expresses all he can't find the words to say.

From:

athelstanthescribe

"As with Ragnar", he murmurs into the kiss, "if there was ever a time I could have run away, it's when he was bedridden and no one else would have stopped me. But I couldn't."

From:

thewidewideworld

"You loved him, even then?" He asks softly, curling his fingers through Athelstan's hair.

From:

athelstanthescribe

"I think I must have. I didn't know it for what it was, and it was long before anything happened between us, but something bound me to him."

From:

thewidewideworld

"And him to you, I think." He smiles softly. "When did you first know, that it was more than duty that bound you together?"

From:

athelstanthescribe

"I don't know if I can pin down a single day or time", he says, thinking. "I think there was an attraction from the first moment, though I was afraid and full of grief. Later... we were swimming together in the fjord, and he was playing around as usual, and I just - couldn't stop looking at him."

From:

thewidewideworld

Sinric smiles playfully, Athelstan's tale helping him out of his dark thoughts. "Was the water cold enough to hide your attraction?"

From:

athelstanthescribe

"It was freezing", he says wryly. "But then he looked at me and our eyes caught, and - Lagertha called us from the shore."

From:

thewidewideworld

"Foiled by the wife." Sinric smiles, still playing softly with Athelstan's hair, coaxing it into little braids. "Will you tell me about your first time?"

From:

athelstanthescribe

"The first time - of anything - was the night we had a vigil for poor Gyda. He'd told everyone he wanted to do it alone, but asked me secretly to come to him when the house had gone to bed."

From:

thewidewideworld

"You shared your grief together?" He didn't judge, he knows well how loss can drive you to need consolation.

From:

athelstanthescribe

"We sat together on the beach by a fire and talked and talked, about Gyda and about the future and other things. He touched the back of my neck, and I let him." He remembers every single moment. "Then a touch turned to a neck rub, and talk of trust and taking care of the family, and then we somehow got to talking about Paris... and all the while looking into each other's eyes so I could barely string two words together."

From:

thewidewideworld

Sinric smiles, enchanted by the tale. "Did you kiss that night?"

From:

athelstanthescribe

"We did. It was almost as if neither of us quite dared to be first, so we moved nearer and nearer - and of course Ragnar was the one to close the distance. And then we couldn't stop."