by Crook, Amy
“Yeah,” said Julian with a little, happy laugh. “It really, really was.”
CHAPTER 31
In Which We Find Ourselves at the End
After an impromptu nap, Alex and Julian spent the afternoon leisurely exploring each other. They took a bath in Alex’s big tub, which he sheepishly admitted was one of the reasons he’d taken the flat. Julian raided the fridge and made sure they ate, and Alex rewarded him by sucking him off under the kitchen table. They had tea and made love and generally acted like a newly-formed couple, and Alex loved every minute of it.
He even took his potions as directed, and avoided doing any magic at all.
At some point, Julian remembered to get his overnight bag and send his driver home, and when Alex finally fell asleep at night with Julian in his arms, he understood perfectly why his heart had urged him all along to fight for this young man. It was as though he’d never been able to see how lonely he was until Julian came along.
Alex woke first, feeling warm and a bit sweaty, but finding it well worth it to have Julian still wrapped around him like a sleepy limpet. A check of his phone showed it was late enough they’d need to get up soon if he was going to make his doctor’s appointment, but early enough for a bit of fun before then. He kissed Julian’s hair, then extricated himself and slid down under the covers. Julian made adorable little noises of protest that turned to sounds of pleasure as Alex started mouthing at his cock and balls.
Julian relaxed into the bed, spreading wide, and murmuring softly in his sleep. Alex worked his mouth up and onto Julian’s cock, sucking gently while his hands cupped and stroked Julian’s hips. Julian’s moans got louder and his words more coherent, and if Cecil’s name showed up a time or two along with Alex’s, well, Alex wasn’t one to feel jealous of someone beyond rivalry. Alex sucked harder, using some of his favourite tongue-tricks, and it was Alex’s name that Julian cried out as he spilled into Alex’s mouth.
Alex swallowed and moved up, pulling his sleepily blinking lover into a sweet kiss. “Good morning, love,” he said, grinning.
Julian grinned right back and cuddled up. “A very good morning,” he replied. His hand drifted down to Alex’s cock, which had enjoyed the proceedings as much as Alex had and was now hoping for its turn, the shaft hard and head wet with precome. “What shall we do about this?”
Alex kissed Julian again. “I thought perhaps we might take care of it in the shower?”
Julian grinned. “You’ve got the best ideas,” he said, slipping out of bed and luring Alex into the bathroom.
Soon enough they were clean and dressed, and Alex elected to eat out for breakfast rather than mourn his own inability to repeat Jacques’ masterpieces. They did leave sufficient treats for the butterfly fairy, including milk and honey and a shot glass of sweet, milky tea, but then Jones arrived and they were off. They chatted amiably about amulets while they went, Jones still in possession of Alex’s old one for now, but all of them agreeing that he ought to have one of his own.
“This is a bit much for me, usually,” said Jones with a chuckle. “Though the car’s never been cleaner or run better.”
Alex laughed. “I’ll make sure to put that in the new one, perhaps I’ll do a pair of them, one specific to you and one for whatever vehicle you drive.” Alex felt a little burst of protest as though the car itself objected to the idea that Jones might drive anything else, which just made him laugh more.
They all three enjoyed breakfast together at a little cafe near the hospital, one that was full of doctors and police and few other people. Alex enjoyed that no one gave them a second glance, and he didn’t have to look up or down or anywhere, wondering whether he’d get attacked mid-omelette.
But he especially enjoyed Julian’s penchant for kissing between bites.
Jones elected to go sit with the car and his takeaway coffee when they went up to the hospital, but Julian came along on Alex’s arm, making him feel very dapper indeed. He used his cane, but it felt less necessary today, as though he’d turned some sort of corner by using his leg normally so much for the past two days.
“Mr. Benedict, good to see you haven’t killed yourself yet,” said the nurse, as they walked into the little reception area. “Dr. Chesterfield will be with you in just a moment.”
“Thank you, Ana, this is Julian St. Albans, my…” Alex paused, cocking his head at Julian.
Julian giggled. “Boyfriend,” he said firmly, shaking the nurse’s hand. “For now.”
“Oh! But weren’t you two engaged just last night?” asked Ana, curious as always about the gossip.
Alex chuckled and made a melodramatic face. “Julian has had his Courtship nullified for magical interference, and so I must now win him merely with my wit and charm.”
Julian giggled. “This way I don’t have to be his consort if we decide we don’t want to do that, and he doesn’t have to be head of the St. Albans household.”
“A fate to be avoided at nearly any cost,” said Alex, patting Julian’s hand where it rested on his arm. “Julian would’ve been worth it, though.”
Ana chuckled. “And now we see why you got to stay the boyfriend,” she said, going back behind her desk.
Julian grinned. “I know, right? And he doesn’t say that stuff unless he means it.”
“It wouldn’t do either of us any good to lie about it,” said Alex. “Otherwise, we’d just end up stuck in a situation almost as miserable as the one we saved you from.”
“I helped save myself,” Julian clarified. They’d talked a bit, last night, about Julian’s feelings regarding Willoughby and the knife he’d left in the man’s side, and Alex was pleased that Julian felt little guilt for defending himself with whatever had been at hand.
“I’d read that, too, stabbed him right in the gut,” said Ana with bloodthirsty approval. “Too bad they’re pretty sure he’s going to live.”
Alex laughed. “He won’t like prison much, I expect.” Someone like Willoughby would be fitted with an anti-magic charm, probably a cuff or bracelet similar in some ways to the cold iron shackle that Duckworth had used on Con. It seemed fitting, but Alex did wonder what might come out the other end, should Willoughby escape a life sentence.
He was spared from anything more when Ana’s phone lit up, and she answered it, then gathered Alex’s chart. “Back you go, are you bringing him, too?” she asked curiously.
“If he wants, he’s welcome,” said Alex, looking to Julian.
“Please,” said Julian, smiling shyly. “I want to hear about when you’ll be better and how to take care of you.”
Alex melted a little and gave him a smaller kiss than he really wanted, which seemed to amuse Ana rather than offend.
“Then come on, Doctor’s waiting,” she said, leading them back to the exam room.
Dr. Chesterfield was indeed waiting, and he chatted amiably with Julian while Alex changed into one of the silly gowns for his examination. Chesterfield talked more as he examined Alex, explaining everything he was looking for to Julian and then chatting with Alex about his leg and general state of health.
“All right, you go get dressed while I correlate your data,” said Chesterfield. He’d taken a number of readings with obscure medicomagical instruments, and sat down at the desk to put together a profile of Alex’s magical health after he’d repeatedly exhausted his personal resources.
“And no helping,” teased Ana, who’d stayed to help with the examination.
“Spoilsport,” said Julian with a false pout; he and Ana got on like a house on fire, and Alex felt ridiculous pride that Julian had come so much out of his shell.
Alex went and got changed, emerging to find that Julian had charmed Ana into going with him to the staff lounge to get tea for all of them. “We’ll move to my office for your results,” said Dr. Chesterfield, standing. “I’m basically done, I want to run a few things through the computer in there.”
“Excellent, there’s better chairs in there,” said Alex with a grin, gath
ering up both their coats and following the doctor to his office. “I’m in for more potions, I assume?”
“Oh, yes,” said Chesterfield, wryly amused. “Different ones, I think, you’ve got some interesting spikes that I want to even out.”
“Well, I’d hate to be boring,” said Alex wryly. He took a seat without being offered, as he was starting to feel the pull of that exhaustion, though both Julian and his cane helped to support him, in very different ways. He had pretty much decided to keep it as an affectation even after he no longer needed its physical support, because the grounding magic built into it had proven very useful indeed.
“Just let me run these numbers, they’ll be back with tea in a minute,” said Dr. Chesterfield, sitting at his computer already distracted by the interesting puzzle that was Alex’s health.
Alex just relaxed, eyes closing, and he was surprised to be kissed back to himself a short time later. “Mm, that is the best medicine ever, thanks,” said Alex, taking his teacup.
Julian sat next to him. “You looked so peaceful I hated to bother you, but I figured you could use a pick-me-up.”
“Just for that, I’m going to take you to lunch somewhere ridiculously posh,” said Alex teasingly, leaning in for another kiss. Ana hadn’t stayed, apparently, though there was another cup of tea steaming next to the doctor.
Julian grinned, “Good, I deserve a treat.”
“And here I thought I was the treat,” said Alex, taking a sip of the tea and finding it far superior to the awful stuff they usually got out of the machines.
“You’re more than a treat,” assured Julian with a soft, sweet smile and an even sweeter kiss.
“You’re also definitely suffering magical exhaustion,” said Dr. Chesterfield, looking amused as he turned back to them and sipped his own tea. “You’ve got a few areas still almost healthy, mostly to do with sensing, and your healing magic isn’t nearly as bad as I’d feared, but I don’t want you doing any spell work beyond activating your wards until you’ve had another week’s worth of potions and another set of tests.”
“Yes, Doctor,” said Alex. “But it’s okay to listen to things, still?”
Dr. Chesterfield nodded. “As long as you don’t take another case until I’ve cleared you for duty, yes, you can use your magical senses as normal.”
Alex relaxed, because he’d worried about that, a bit. It was instinct for him to listen just a little, all the time, and he’d have had a hard time giving that up. “I can do that, then.”
“I’ve sent your prescription down to the apothecary here, but it’s a custom item, so you’ll have to go donate a few drops of blood and then come get your potion after lunch. This one should be daily, rather than at meals, anyway.” Dr. Chesterfield smiled wryly. “I have to say, I didn’t think your case would give me such interesting things to look into when it was brought to me.”
Alex laughed and said, “Well, I’m glad to have kept up your interest, I know your time is very valuable.”
“As is yours, I suspect,” said Chesterfield. “I’m certain your expertise is just as much in demand as my own.”
Alex grinned, surprised. “It is, in its way, though I don’t have the same infrastructure you do to bring me clients,” he said, waving his hand to indicate the hospital. “Do let me know if you need an amulet, though. Or a murder investigated.”
Julian giggled. “He’s quite good at the latter.”
“So I hear,” said Chesterfield. He stood and shook hands with them. “Just head down to the apothecary, they’ll be waiting to take their sample.”
“Thank you again, Dr. Chesterfield. I’ll see you next Tuesday, then?”
“Yes. Potion before you come,” instructed the doctor. “Ana or someone will get you set up.”
They said goodbye and headed out, making the appointment for the afternoon and then heading down to the apothecary, where Alex gave a small blood sample, this time taken from his arm. Lunch was expensively delicious, the potion tasted as awful as ever, and Jones was happy to ferry them back and forth. The afternoon was spent at the Agency giving statements and Alex’s bill, which didn’t get so much as a blink from Smedley despite the impressive total. There was a lot of teasing and congratulations and then false sympathy when it got around that the engagement was off, and all in all Alex felt more at home after all that had happened than ever before.
~ ~ ~
“Emmy’s invited us out to tea,” said Julian, where he was lounging in Alex’s reading-chair in the work room. It had been a couple of weeks, and after getting a clean bill of health and then constructing some new parts, Alex was ready to repair Horace today. “She wants us to meet this mysterious new beau of hers.”
“At least we know it’s not Willoughby,” said Alex teasingly. He was hunched over his workbench, carefully removing and replacing Horace’s bent beak with a new, improved model in a sturdier metal. Several of the feathers being replaced were actually perfectly good still, but Alex wanted the upgrades to be symmetrical, adding a bit of a pattern to both wings rather than just looking like a patch job.
“We’re going, right?” asked Julian, reading through the rest of her letter. They’d gotten in the habit of corresponding that way, and Julian was excited to send Horace with their reply today.
“We’re going, now go answer her while I finish this or I’ll never finish,” said Alex, but his tone was gentle. Julian was a welcome distraction in Alex’s life, especially now that he lived with Alex most of the time.
Julian came and collected a kiss, then closed the door so Alex could work in peace. Alex re-struck his tuning fork and this time it was easier for him to listen to the threads of Horace’s music and work in harmony with them. It seemed like no time at all before he’d changed out Horace’s old parts for the new ones, and had the little bird sitting on his shoulder, chirping happily in his ear.
“Thanks for being patient, old friend,” said Alex. He gathered up the pieces, whole feathers set aside in a box to be made into something new and the broken ones stripped of their enchantment and set aside in a different box to bargain with Con at a later date. He’d also finished Con’s pendant this morning, using the setting to emphasise the heart-shape rather than changing the natural stone and giving the glow spell an added little hook that would beat in time to the wearer’s heart. He emerged with Con’s pendant in his pocket and Horace on his hand, pleased to see Julian was still writing at the desk.
“All done,” said Alex, giving Horace a little boost.
The bird launched himself off Alex’s finger with a joyful trill, flying over to settle on Julian’s shoulder and rub his head against Julian’s cheek affectionately. “Oh, you’re all better!” said Julian, kissing the bird’s head. “You look quite handsome with your new colours,” he said, admiring the silvery shimmer of beak and feathers against Horace’s old bronze finish. Horace helped by holding out a wing, then hopping down to the desk to show off, strutting quite vainly.
Alex laughed and came over to stroke the bird’s head. “So, I’m forgiven for letting you get hurt in the first place?” he asked.
Horace nipped his finger affectionately, just a gentle tug of his new beak, and then trilled a swell of gratitude to Alex for keeping Julian safe.
Alex smiled and stroked Horace’s head again, then kissed the top of Julian’s hair. “He says I have to keep you, because he’s really yours now, anyway.”
Julian laughed delightedly. “Oh, is that so?” he said, pulling Alex down for a kiss before turning back to the bird. “Well, Horace, to you feel up to taking Emmy a letter?”
Horace trilled happily and moved off the papers, hopping back up to Julian’s shoulder to wait for him to be finished.
“I’m going to call Con to give him his pendant, along with the brownie that he said might be able to get the dents out of the fridge, okay? We’ve got no plans tonight?” said Alex, heading for the kitchen.
“Sounds good,” said Julian distractedly, already back to his letter.
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Alex conjured two little butterflies and gave each a name, Con for one and Brownie Nat for the other, as instructed, and sent them off through the kitchen window and out into the world. Then he put the kettle on, figuring they’d want tea no matter what.
The kettle had barely boiled when the doorbell rang, and Alex took a moment to set a full pot to brewing before he answered it. “Con, I wondered if you’d be nearby,” said Alex with a grin. Next to the little earth sprite was a much bigger faerie, a cheerful brownie in proper clothing, his skin brown as a nut and grin only a little unsettling. He came about halfway up Alex’s thigh, and Alex smiled right back. “And you must be Nat?”
“Aye, that I be,” said the little fae. “May we come in?”
“You may enter as guests, with guest-rights and restrictions,” said Alex formally.
“Yes, yes, I accept,” said Con, clearly impatient with Alex’s formality.
Alex chuckled and whistled Con in through the wards. “And you?”
“I accept as well, good Mage,” said Nut, waiting to be let in. The two little beings headed straight for the kitchen, and Alex chuckled and followed.
“Tea’s steeping, the kettle’s just boiled, but there’s bread and honey,” said Alex. The butterfly fairy was curled up in its plant, which it had been diligent in getting Alex to care for properly. It had chosen to stay in Alex’s flat rather than go live on the St. Albans estate, so Alex made sure there was always fresh bread, milk and honey for its upkeep.
“You’ve got me bauble?” asked Con casually. “It’s the last day of the moon.”
“I do, I’m sorry it took so long,” said Alex. He pulled it out of his pocket and handed it over, having put it on a short bit of chain. “See if that’ll fit over your head, I want to make sure the beating spell is working right.”
“Oh, now that is a lovely bit o’ work,” said the brownie appreciatively.