by Neil Plakcy
“Hathvit.” Guilty relief, which had taken root the moment Tevseth had crossed the deck, was joined by hollow disbelief. How could they—he, the Sea Dragon, the town as a whole, their friends and neighbors—have lost two young men? Hathvit was Kelvi’s own apprentice and a new father.
“Step aside, please.” Letha, one of the town’s healers, repaid his earlier impatience by bumping him out of the way with her hip.
When Tevseth finally, awkwardly, climbed down, Kelvi drew him away from the rest of the crowd. “You’re sure you don’t need to see Letha?”
“It’s only a scratch, I promise,” Tevseth said, pulling him into an embrace. “I just want to go home.”
“As do I.” Kelvi gave him a squeeze, then stepped back, took his hand and led him up the ramp toward their snug house.
On their doorstep, Tevseth paused again to cup Kelvi’s face and tilt his head back before he leaned down and kissed him. “Missed your voice, Kelpling. Missed your face and everything about you.” He would mourn later. Now, home again, with Kelvi warm and alive under his hands, he would thank the goddess for reuniting them.
Kelvi kissed him back, running his fingers through Tevseth’s hair. “I know. I was… When I thought…the worst, I was always grateful I’d gotten up to say good-bye.”
“Told you,” Tevseth said, ducking his head so he could nuzzle the skin just under Kelvi’s ear, “told you I don’t believe in drowning. Waste of time.” Underneath the usual words, though, was his own gratitude that they’d been able to say their good-byes.
Kelvi laughed and fumbled at the latch, closing his eyes as Tevseth lifted him over the threshold. “I know.”
“I was glad, too. And… The knife you made me, it probably saved us all.” Tevseth pressed his forehead to Kelvi’s as their hands met on the hilt of the knife at his hip. “I had to come back to tell you.”
Instead of saying anything, Kelvi tilted his head and kissed the bigger man, kissed him as hard and as deeply as he could.
“Mmm,” Tevseth said, opening to his lover and clutching at Kelvi’s shirt. “Bed now,” he gasped when Kelvi pulled away for a moment, then shoved his shirt up to put his hands on bare skin.
“Bath now. Love you dearly, but you’re—” Kelvi groaned as Tevseth simultaneously pinched his nipples and sucked at the side of his throat. “Tev, you’ve been at sea for almost a month.”
“If you love me—”
“Hush,” Kelvi said, putting his fingers over the bigger man’s mouth. “I’ll wash your back.”
“Oh, all right,” Tevseth said, his tongue flicking out around Kelvi’s fingers. His husband’s skin tasted smoky, metallic; tasted of Kelvi’s forge and honest labor.
“Good. Now.” Kelvi drew his hand away and caught both of Tevseth’s, mindful of the bandage on his left arm.
They made it as far as the door to their bathing room, where Kelvi halted and pulled Tev down to claim another kiss.
He kissed back, losing himself in the heat and the sweetness of the embrace. Tevseth’s hands found Kelvi’s shirt, pulling it free of his pants, the man himself reluctantly drawing back so he could lift the garment over Kelvi’s head.
“Piecemeal won’t work,” Kelvi said, shifting a half step backward so he could open his own trousers. “Naked now, Fishy.”
Kelpling and Fishy, silly pet names that sent a happy ache twisting around his heart and throat. Tevseth fumbled at the laces of his own boots, finally getting them undone, then skinned out of his clothes once they were off. When Kelvi was undressed, he held out his arms.
“You smell,” Kelvi said, stepping into Tevseth’s offered hug anyway, “but I have you to smell. That—”
“I know,” Tevseth said, bending his knees and getting his hands under Kelvi’s legs, then hitching him up so he could carry him into the bathing room. Despite Kelvi’s relatively small size, he was heavy with muscles earned through long hours at his anvil; despite Tevseth’s determination to put his sorrow aside, it was too new not to bite. “I know, I know, and I have you, too. Even if I couldn’t help, even if I couldn’t keep Hathvit safe for you. For his family.”
“It’s all right.” Kelvi put a hand on Tevseth’s right cheek, pressing his own to Tevseth’s left, at the name of his apprentice. “I know, She knows, that you would have, if you could. It’s not your fault, and please, please, don’t—” He kissed Tevseth, kissed a line from cheek to mouth and then pressed his forehead to Tevseth’s. “Tev, Fishy… Put me down?”
“But…” He let Kelvi slip from his hands, holding him steady until he stood on his own.
“Hush.” Kelvi put his fingers to Tevseth’s lips once again, then let them fall away as he pushed up to give him a brief kiss. “You get the water started, I’ll find towels.”
Tevseth nodded, turning away from Kelvi; he kept glancing at him as the other man moved across the room. While Kelvi looked over the shelves where they kept the towels, soap and other bathing necessities, Tevseth turned his attention to the tub. It was sunk into the floor, lined with slick-glazed tiles, with a tap jutting out over the edge closest to the wall. He pressed the wide stopper into the drain hole at the bottom, then opened the valve to fill it. A cistern on the roof, painted black, held and warmed the water; gravity led it to the tub.
Kelvi put the towels he carried on a small stool that stood beside the tub, then put the soap dish, a wooden cup, a sponge and two slim bottles down on the floor below it. He held Tevseth’s hand as they watched the water level rise, then leaned over and turned off the tap when it reached the halfway mark.
The water was warmer than the tiles, but cooler than his own skin. Tevseth didn’t mind, carefully kneeling in the bottom of the tub and watching Kelvi step in as well.
They passed the cup, sponge and soap back and forth as they washed each other, punctuating the slow process with quick kisses along arms and shoulders and collarbones; lingering kisses when their mouths met.
“Tilt your head back, Fishy.” Kelvi reached for one of the two bottles.
“Clean water first,” Tevseth murmured, and opened the drain. The level of the murky water dropped, slowly at first, then seeming to move more quickly as the draw of the drain grew obvious.
“I… Sometimes, I…worry. About you, and the boat, sailing into something like this,” Kelvi said, trailing a finger through the edge of the miniature maelstrom the drain created.
“I’ve never seen one,” Tevseth said, pushing his hand through the center of it. “Not one large enough to sail into. Mostly we worry about rocks.” He looked up, into Kelvi’s eyes, his hand rising to catch the other man’s chin and hold him still. “All I wanted was you. To come home to you.” With that, he leaned forward and covered Kelvi’s mouth with his own, his tongue sweeping over Kelvi’s lips before slipping between them.
He met Tevseth’s kiss with a sound of want, opening his mouth and abandoning the bottle he held in favor of resting his hands on Tevseth’s biceps.
“Now,” Tevseth said, putting his hands under Kelvi’s backside and pulling him up so their stiffening cocks nestled beside one another, “will you have me? Now?”
“Yes,” Kelvi said, clutching at broad shoulders, rolling his hips as skin slid against skin. “Yes, yes, yes.”
A breath and then Tevseth rose, dripping; he kissed Kelvi thoroughly before he began to edge toward the side of the tub. He carried the smaller man carefully across the floor to the bench that stood near the shelves of towels and other supplies, relaxing his grip only once he’d straddled the bench and sat down.
Kelvi straightened up and pulled down the nearest towel, then set to work drying them off. He worked from their feet upward; a kiss to the head of Tevseth’s cock, followed by a little lick, and he was gone again.
“Kelpling,” Tevseth said, as his husband dropped the towel, “need to touch you.”
“Just let me—there,” Kelvi said, taking another bottle from the shelf and offering it to him. Turning around, he put one foot over the bench and le
aned over, supporting himself with his hands.
Tevseth put the bottle down and watched as Kelvi moved, putting his hands on Kelvi’s ass and spreading him wide as the man bent over. He kissed and licked his way from Kelvi’s perineum to the small of his back, then down again to linger in the spot that made him squirm.
“Ah! Oh, you’re teasing and I thought you needed to touch me.” Kelvi shifted his weight, slowly, his breath hitching as the tip of Tevseth’s tongue flicked delicately across his skin.
“’M touching you,” Tevseth said, with a squeeze. “Love you clean like this.” He sat up a little and nibbled his way along the curves of Kelvi’s buttocks.
“Tev, Fishy, that’s—oh…” Another, somewhat faster, shift as Tevseth held him wide again and licked at puckered flesh. “Give me more? Yes.” He hissed the word as Tevseth’s tongue pushed into him.
There was only so much teasing Tevseth could stand, and he was the one providing it. One last lick and he straightened up, looking for the bottle, locating it by his foot. “Still for me?”
“Don’t make me wait.” Kelvi let his head fall forward, reaching back to hold his erection and his bollocks to one side. He could only see part of the other man, a slice of his abdomen and a flash of the head of his cock. Tevseth’s finger, slick with oil, pressed against him and he did his best to relax and let it in.
The room was not quite silent, their breathing loud in their ears; Kelvi’s pleased sound when Tevseth’s finger found his sweet spot echoed off the tiles.
“Don’t, don’t, don’t tease, Tev, please—” Kelvi moaned some minutes later. Tevseth’s fingers curled, thumb rubbing at the skin just behind his bollocks and the two inside him riding the sensitive organ; his knuckles went white and his nails dug into the wood of the bench. “Take me! Please, by the goddess, Tev…”
“You want me?” Tevseth said, his voice oddly gentle.
Kelvi turned around, setting one knee on the bench. It was his turn to cup Tevseth’s face, to tilt his head back, a rare enough occurrence that he took the time to savor it before kissing his husband. “Yes,” he breathed, afterward, “yes, take me, now.”
“Just a moment.” Tevseth poured more oil into his hand, on the careless side of generous, then set the bottle out of harm’s way. Once he’d leaned against the wall, settled a little lower on the bench and slicked his cock, he put his hands on Kelvi’s hips and tugged him closer. “Come here.”
It was awkward, at first, straddling Tevseth and holding himself up. Kelvi didn’t mind, though, busy kissing and being kissed while Tevseth guided the head of his cock between Kelvi’s buttocks. He reached down and adjusted the position of it, then lowered himself a little. “Ah!”
“Won’t hurt you,” Tevseth said, his eyes closed and his jaw tight as he clenched his teeth. “Won’t move till you say.”
“Fishy-love,” Kelvi whispered into Tevseth’s ear, then licked-sucked-bit the lobe, “Take me.”
“You want—”
“Fuck me, take me, mark me, make me yours all over again, do it fucking now, please—Yes!” Kelvi let his head fall back as Tevseth thrust up into him.
He turned his head and pressed his lips to the tender skin at the base of Kelvi’s throat, then bit down, sucked hard. Kelvi squirmed in his lap and he made another mark on the other side, pushing up again as the man shoved himself down.
“Tev, lover mine—Yes—” Kelvi dug his nails into Tevseth’s shoulders, rocking, making needy, desperate noises at the back of his throat.
“Come?” Tevseth could feel Kelvi’s cock rubbing against him, leaving little smears of wetness behind, the man’s body squeezing his own erection.
“No,” he panted, then stilled and kissed Tevseth, smiling against the man’s lips as Tevseth whined.
“Come,” Tevseth said, doing his best to make it demanding. Kelvi had risen off him a little and he could clearly feel every trick his lover used to reduce him to nearly wordless need. “Kelpling—”
Kelvi dropped into Tevseth’s lap once more with a small gasp. “Need to hear you, Fishy-love.”
“Oh.” He found Kelvi’s nipples and rolled them, hunched over so he could bite and suck at another bit of unmarked skin.
“Just fuck me,” Kelvi murmured, wriggling under his touch, sliding his hands over Tevseth’s back.
“Yes,” Tevseth grunted, thrusting into him, closing his eyes as Kelvi rose and fell in concert. He ran his hands over Kelvi’s sides, his thighs, his back, needing the reassurance of the contact and wanting to reassure through it.
“There,” Kelvi breathed, combing his fingers through Tevseth’s hair, kissing him without regard to where his lips landed. “Now, Tev, come for me?”
“Mmm.” Tevseth panted as he fucked the other man, fingers tightening on Kelvi’s thighs as he did. His climax started with his toes curling and a stillness that echoed the wood beneath them as exquisite fire flashed through him. A low, shuddery moan escaped, half-muffled by the crook of Kelvi’s neck; Tevseth’s grip dug deep enough to leave accidental bruises that he would kiss, guiltily, later.
“You’re home, Tev,” Kelvi whispered, petting Tevseth’s hair, his own eyes closed. “You’re home, and I’ve got you.”
“I am,” he said, smoothing his hands over Kelvi’s legs before working his right hand between them. “I know.” Tevseth started with gentle strokes, his head resting on Kelvi’s shoulder, nose not quite pressed against the side of Kelvi’s neck.
“More,” Kelvi said, kissing the side of Tevseth’s face, “please—yes.”
Tevseth tightened his hand around Kelvi, whispering, “Your turn.”
Kelvi leaned back, propping himself up by holding on to the bench and letting his head drop. The change in angle drove little high-pitched sounds out of him as he moved, as Tevseth’s hand and softening prick worked the oldest magic of all on him.
He let Kelvi set his own pace, one hand squeezing the shaft of Kelvi’s cock while the other stroked hard and fast over the head of it, foreskin and slickness making it easy.
“Pretty Kelpling,” Tevseth said, smiling as Kelvi’s usual annoyance was replaced by a wordless cry, Kelvi’s body bucking and jerking under his hands. When the other man relaxed, Tevseth lifted his hand to his mouth to lick and suck his fingers clean; Kelvi shoved himself upright and kissed Tevseth around them—Tevseth’s cock twitched at the feeling and he wished not for the first time that they were sixteen all over again.
“So good to have you home,” Kelvi said, softly, “it’s not the same without you.”
Kelvi’s curiosity got the better of him as they headed into town. “What happened?”
“It was… It was… It was just water. Hathvit and I, we were going to go up to cut down one of the sails because it was torn and was going to break off the top of the mast. We were the… the best choice. We had lines tied around us, tied to the rails… Before we could get up, out of the way, a wave…a wave came over the rail. And he slipped, and I couldn’t get to him.”
“An accident.”
“I should have—”
“An accident. Tev, don’t—”
“I couldn’t—I couldn’t help him. Hathvit was…he was your apprentice and I couldn’t—” Tevseth’s voice hitched.
Tevseth’s gentle heart was one of the things that had drawn Kelvi to him; one of the things he most prized in his lover. He held fast as Tev mourned for the both of them.
“I’m sorry,” Tevseth said, a bit later, sniffing and finding his handkerchief.
“For what?” Kelvi kissed his shoulder, then spoke without lifting his head. “I know you, Tev, and I know you wouldn’t have let anyone get hurt if you could. Hathvit and everyone on the Sea Dragon knows. She knows. None of us blame you.”
“I know, but it still doesn’t…” Tevseth gave a great shuddering sigh and shook his head. “I’m home, and Hathvit…”
“His family won’t blame you, either. We’ll help them, Tev. I promise.”
“All right. Good.”
A deep, shuddering breath and he pulled himself up straight.
Kelvi gave him a wry smile. “You know, if I had told him no, if I’d forbidden him to go out fishing—”
“But it’s not your fault—Oh,” Tevseth said, blinking at Kelvi.
“You’re not the only one feeling responsible, Fishy.” Kelvi linked his arm through Tevseth’s and tilted his head toward the street. “Let’s go see the rest of our family.”
“All right.” Tevseth looked down as they entered the market square, his attention caught by something strange in Kelvi’s appearance. “Kelvi, those are your old boots.”
“Yes,” Kelvi said, glancing at his feet.
“Why? You just bought new ones.” He watched the cracked leather folding as Kelvi moved; could see Kelvi’s toes through the holes.
“Because I needed you to come home, so I gave my new ones to the goddess.” The memory of them sinking out of sight flickered across his mind’s eye and he squeezed Tevseth’s forearm.
“Kelvi, Kelpling, you…” Shaking his head, Tevseth marveled at his life. This was the man he’d married, who sacrificed something he needed for him.
“I’ll get a new pair. Tethiva’s shop survived all right,” Kelvi said, gesturing across the square at the cobbler’s home. “If I’d thought of it, I’d have added my favorite hammer and asked for Hathvit and Kiseth, too. You’re all irreplaceable, but things are just…things. Come on.”
And so they went, to halve sorrows and double joys, to mourn together and be grateful together.
HEAT LIGHTNING
Neil Plakcy
What do you mean you can’t go with me?” I asked. “We’ve had this transport on the books for a month. And we’re scheduled to leave tomorrow.”
“Got a better offer, dude.” Rob was a pierced, tattooed twenty-something who danced at a gay club in Wilton Manors for tips. But he had grown up on Nantucket and knew how to handle any kind of boat, so I hired him when he was available to help me move boats around Florida, the Caribbean, and the southeastern U.S. But this was the second time he’d flaked out on me, and I was over him, even if he was cute.