for Cremisius

[iwasmore]

Noah was so much busier in Darrow at night than he had been back home. Without Ronan around, he occasionally kept Gansey company when he was alone with his insomnia. He had Al to look after, to try and keep him from having nightmares. He checked on Ronan to make sure he wasn't having any nightmares - or dreaming anything dangerous into the world. He didn't check on Ronan when he was at Adam's, though, giving them privacy in case they wanted it. He didn't check on Blue, because she was a girl, and it seemed impolite to show up in her bedroom in the middle of the night.

And then, there was Krem. Noah wasn't trying to be creepy, but he wanted to peek in to check and make sure he was okay. The common theme among everyone here was being displaced, and that alone was enough to cause poor sleep, or even nightmares. And Cremisius had also been a solider, and Noah could imagine that came with it's own set of problems.

The first night Noah checked in on Cremisius, he appeared to be sleeping just fine. Prunam was even curled at the bottom of the bed near his feet. Noah left a small handful of glitter that had been left over from Adam's birthday party on the bedside table and disappeared. The second night, Cremisius was awake, sitting up in bed and looking pensive. Noah wanted to say something, but felt to shy just showing up, and left. The third night, Noah came in the middle of an awful nightmare. Cremisius was making a pained sound, curled in on himself, and Noah could see he mind conjuring blood and the bodies of friends, strewn among rubble and smoke. He tossed, one hand clutching at his chest even in sleep, and Noah's own unbeating, useless heart gave a pang of sympathy, because even if he was no longer alive he could still feel.

Noah joined Krem in bed, too worried to spare a thought for whether he'd want him there or not, too worried to even remember to go corporeal, and stroked his hair in soft, soothing motions. Shh, he whispered, trying to calm Krem's nightmares from growing worse. He didn't have any magic to change thoughts or stop nightmares, but he always hoped his cool touch would soothe and interrupt; like his family dog, when he was a child. Sadie would sometimes woof and growl in her dreams, and if Noah put a gentle hand on her stomach, or stroked her back, the dreams would calm without her truly coming awake, and she'd sleep soundly.

Comments

[krempuff]

Krem blushed a bit under Noah's intense attention, so much more direct than Thomas's more furtive glances had been, but less hungry than Hild's. He watched him carefully, curious to see his reaction.

When he spoke, Krem sat up a bit. He cupped the back of Noah's neck and leaned their foreheads together. "It's alright," he said. He closed his eyes, and touched Noah's sweater. "They are real--you're real, Noah. It's alright, if I can't see you right now."

[iwasmore]

Noah chest ached with emotion, and he became overwhelmed with a different feeling entirely; a deep affection for Krem's kind heart. It drowned out the panic that had been edging it's way beyond the corners of Noah's mind. No one had ever tried to affirm his realness, they usually only noticed the ways he wasn't real. "Thank you," he whispered, and wrapped his arms around Krem.

"You have so many muscles," he said after a long moment, trying to lighten the mood he'd kind of ruined.

[krempuff]

Krem laughed softly and smiled. He pushed Noah back, not unkindly, but so that he would straighten a little, and then leaned over to turn on the bedside lamp. He didn't really want to have his mostly-naked body seen in the light, but it would make it more impressive when he showed off.

With the light on and them both sitting up, he lifted his arms up, and flexed.

[iwasmore]

Noah gazed at Krem, admiring his how toned and muscled his stomach and arms were. He was so cute showing off, Noah's smile widened until he was beaming, and he clapped softly. "Incredible."

He touched one of Krem's biceps, giving a gentle squeeze. "You could probably bench press me, even if you are like a foot shorter."

[krempuff]

Krem pushed Noah gently, scoffing. "I am not a foot shorter than you, Ser. I know exactly what that dimension looks like against me."

It made it sound like he'd been against people that much taller than him, and he hastened to say, "I mean, there are a lot of people a lot taller than me that I've worked with."

It still sounded a bit silly. He pouted, and kissed Noah instead. "I'm not that short."

[iwasmore]

Noah looked amused and laughed into the kiss, holding onto Krem's waist. "Kinda short." He kissed him again, and then leaned in closer and whispered against Krem's ear, "But it's okay, because you're also more than kinda sexy." He hid in Krem's hair, embarrassed to say it, even though it was true. He didn't know if real people called each other sexy, but Krem definitely was and he thought he should know.

[krempuff]

Krem laughed a little, softer and lighter, kissing Noah back. He wrapped his arms around Noah's shoulders again, laying back down. Now, with the light on, he knew his blushing would be more visible. He felt more visible and vulnerable overall, but it was not so scary this time.

"I think I can settle for sexy."

[iwasmore]

"Oh, good." Noah smiled down at Krem, feeling more confident that Krem hadn't laughed at him in a teasing way. He ran his hand up Krem's side, across his flat stomach, up to his breasts; anywhere there was skin to touch. The light made no difference to him, he could see just fine in the dark. "Because I wasn't sure if they had that word in medieval times, with all the dragons and elves and things."

[krempuff]

Krem snorted, pouting a little bit at the teasing. It was mostly ineffectual, since Noah was touching him all over. He peered up at him softly, combing his fingers up into Noah's hair gently.

"We have to have something to call the dragons and elves and things." He even managed to keep a totally straight face.

[iwasmore]

Noah tilted his head into Krem's touch, wanting, for a moment, to purr like a cat.

"Oh? Do you know any sexy dragons? I'm a little jealous," he replied, also keeping a straight face.

[krempuff]

"I have no opinions on sexy dragons," Krem said, rubbing at Noah's scalp and kissing at his cheeks and along his jaw gently. "The Chief certainly seemed to have quite a few opinions, though."

His head was ticking toward a dangerous, sad spiral, and he pulled himself away from it as hard as he could. Noah was here, Noah had come here--maybe not with this intention, but to see him. He didn't need to see the dark, sad thoughts in his head.

"We're getting off track..."

[iwasmore]

Noah had joked because he didn't know sexy dragons were actually a thing. He still wasn't even sure what Krem was getting at, but felt Krem's thoughts veering toward a sad place before he'd even said anything, so he didn't ask.

Instead, Noah kissed Krem's mouth with a gentle touch, chaste. "What track were we on?" he asked in an airy voice, nuzzling his nose against Krem's. He lightly dragged his short fingernails up Krem's side to tickle, to make Krem shiver and distract from his thoughts.

[krempuff]

Krem shivered a bit at the scrape, less tickled and more squirming at the thrilling, chilly sensation of it. He sighed against the soft kiss and gave Noah's hair a gentle tug.

"Well," he smiled, "I believe you were kissing me a bit more. And your hands were a bit further north of my ribs..." He took one of his hands off Noah's head to redirect his hand to his chest.

[iwasmore]

Noah hummed pleasantly at the hair tug, and smiled down at Krem with his eyes half-closed. "I got distracted by your abs," he said, and cupped Krem's cheek with his free hand, dipping down to kiss him, not wasting any time with teasing pecks. He felt a renewed hunger for Krem's mouth, for his touch and the feeling of his warm skin under his palms. He cupped the weight of his breast in his hand, pinching lightly at the nipple, experimentally, to see if Krem liked it.

[krempuff]

Krem squirmed under Noah's touches and pinching, kissing him back with a hungry edge and a smile. He tilted his head back from the kiss after a moment, encouraging Noah to move down to his neck again. The little bruises he'd left earlier were there, red on his tanned skin, his pulse swift under his skin.

[iwasmore]

"You like that?" Noah whispered, kissing open-mouthed along Krem's neck. The sight of the marks he'd made, knowing anyone would be able to see them, made his chest feel tight, his skin hot, even though he knew it could never be. He scraped along Krem's skin with his teeth, and sucked again, worrying the spot with his tongue.

Noah eventually moved lower, slowly kissing along Krem's collarbone, to his shoulder, and then lower still, sliding his hand down a little, out of the way. He looked up through his lashes, making sure it was okay, mouth paused at the swell of Krem's breast.

[krempuff]

"Yes." The word came out breathy, needful and desirous. Noah's lips and teeth and tongue felt sure on his neck, his weight a definite thing. He shivered as he began to move further south, swallowing and licking his lips, nodding even before Noah had reached his chest.

"Yes. Yes, please." His body felt over-hot, his body aching.

[iwasmore]

"Cremisius," Noah whispered, voice urgent. His hands bracketed Krem's sides and then slid behind to the small of his back, putting pressure to raise his body just a little, like he was going to lift Krem, like he was making sure Krem stayed there with him. He lowered his mouth once more, licking a trail along the slope of Krem's breast, mouthing at so much soft skin. When his tongue reached the nipple he merely licked at first, teasing. He could feel Krem squirm, and began to suck, too turned on to work up to it. His fingers dug a little into the skin of Krem's back, and he moved to the other breast.

[krempuff]

The urgency in Noah's voice was possibly even more thrilling than the way Noah was touching and kissing him. He swallowed and sighed, touching Noah's hair again while he squirmed. There was an edge of desperation in him that cut through him, from between his legs and up through his belly.

The stiffness of Noah's fingers, the feel of his mouth, were overwhelming for a moment. Krem breathed out, legs shaking. "Maker..."

[iwasmore]

"God, you feel good," Noah groaned, pressing the flat of his tongue to Krem's nipple, blowing his cool breath along the saliva, then sucking again. He scraped gently with his teeth, trying anything that seemed like it would make the nerve-endings react. "So hot...so..." His fingers clawed harmlessly at Krem's back and did lift his upper body, just a little, fingers splaying and holding onto the back of Krem's shoulders as he pressed his mouth impatiently to the side of Krem's breast, sucking hard, intending to mark it as he had on his neck.

[krempuff]

Krem giggled, breathless, but it dissolved into a groan. He shivered again, shaking harder while his breath hitched harder. He arched hard toward Noah's mouth, helped by the way he lifted and grabbed at him, the way that he was sucking up bruises on his chest.

"Fuck. Noah...!"

[iwasmore]

"Mmm," was all Noah could say in response, his face still pressed to all that lush skin. He mouthed his way up Krem's chest with lips, tongue, and teeth, briefly biting at the corner of his jaw as one hand moved up to cup the back of Krem's head. His other arm braced Krem's back, still holding him raised up, and he kissed him, open-mouthed and breathless.

[krempuff]

Krem shook, chest heaving, as Noah hummed and made his way up. His whole body was overwhelmed and he was so very hot, and tired, and awake all at once.

He could feel Noah, a point of interest against his groin that he had not expected but perhaps should have for how he had complimented and groaned and murmured. His cheeks flushed.

"Would you... Should I...?" The nerves were back in him, which surprised him.

[iwasmore]

"Huh?" Noah asked stupidly, distracted by the slight tremble he felt from Krem beneath him, how flushed and pleased he seemed. He realized, belatedly, what Krem was asking and he blushed. "Oh. No, I'm-- I don't even know if--" It was stupid to feel embarrassed at that point, but that wasn't entirely it. He just hadn't even realized he was hard. His whole body ached with want, he hadn't even noticed. It was almost like Krem pointing it out made it real. Like a phantom limb, a memory from when he'd been an actual seventeen year old boy with Whelk's stolen porn collection. But he didn't even know if it worked, and he was too scared to find out.

"I'm fine." He moved his lower body off Krem's, bracing himself sideways on his elbow. He could feel his body slowly calming as Krem's did. There had been something else, there, too. Beyond Noah's own discomfort was Krem's. He either wasn't attracted to it, or wasn't ready, or maybe both. Noah wasnt sure if he should say something, though, because he wasn't sure if Krem had said it out loud or not.

"Plus, I can tell you don't really want to, and I'm super not okay doing something you're only okay with, or have to make yourself," Noah added, realizing he wanted to be clear he didn't want Krem to feel obligated. "I only want to do things you all the way want to, where you're like, oh Maker, Noah, do that thing with the spatula." He did his best impression of Krem, but the breathy, whiny voice he adopted made it sound extra hilarious and he couldn't hold back a grin.

[krempuff]

Krem was surprised when Noah moved off him, less so by Noah saying he didn't need to worry about pleasuring him. It wasn't that he didn't want to, but not having to settled nicely, in amongst the other over-pleasant emotions in his belly that he refused to acknowledge as anything other than postcoital bliss.

He dragged Noah back toward him, still shaking a little while his body tried to catch up with the reality of the situation. Noah's honesty, and then teasing, made him swat him gently.

"I did not sound like that," Krem said. It was a lie, because he'd heard his own gasping, desperate begging.