Sans Raiment

Chapter 8

Cliff swallowed a lump of anxiety in his throat when he looked at the letter again. Albel was calling him; his mate was calling him. That presented a problem with the mission. They had gathered their crew and materials for a long journey and there would be no time to take a brief sojourn to Elicoor. Or perhaps there would be…he had to go talk to Mirage and Maria.

When the man entered the sickbay, Mirage was taking an inventory of the medicines stocked in their cabinets. She glanced over at him, smiled, and returned to her work.

“Hey,” Cliff said, striding over, “I need to talk to you.”

“Shoot.” Mirage said, not looking up.

The man stood close to her. “We’re making a pit stop at Rossary in the neighboring system of Elicoor, right?”

That caught the woman’s attention. She glanced at her friend, then sighed and put her inventory list down. Cliff walked over to a patient bed and laid down, tucking his arms behind his head. Mirage pulled a chair up beside the bed.

“Do I even need to ask what this is about?” She fixed the man with a serious look.

He sighed. “No, you know me better than that. You know I’m after one thing.”

“One person.” She corrected.

“Yeah, yeah. Rossary is only a skip away from Elicoor II. While you guys set about getting recruits from their ranks, I can jump over to Elicoor and check on Albel.”

“Has he communicated with you?”

“Yeah. He wants me back home.”

Mirage raised an eyebrow. “Home? Elicoor is home now?” Cliff did not respond. “Look, I personally don’t mind if you go off on your own, as long as you’re back on time for us to depart, but Maria is another story. You know how strict she is. You signed up for this, so you had better commit.”

Cliff grunted. “Yeah, she’s the one I was worried about. If she gives me trouble, I’ll pull the big brother card on her or something. Or worse--I’ll tell her the truth.”

“The truth is always good.” Mirage laughed. “I think you should share your concerns with her. Or if it’s really important, be prepared to bail on the mission.”

“Yeah, that’s what I’m afraid of…”

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“Absolutely not!”

Cliff cleaned his ear out with a finger. “Why not, Maria?”

“Because I forbid it!” The girl yelled, turning on the man and stomping up to him. She was smaller than him, but her storming temper made up for her smaller size. “You signed up for this mission and as a member of Quark you are bound by contract to complete said mission and follow my orders, or be discharged for insubordination!”

He laughed. He couldn’t help it. The sound formed low in his throat, then bubbled up, past his lips. When she heard the sound, Maria looked shock. Cliff tried to suppress his smile, but he failed.

“Quark doesn’t exist anymore, Maria. It disbanded. What you have here is some ragtag, recreation of Quark. Any contract I signed--which I never did since I made this organization--would have been null and void when the group disbanded. Anyway, this isn’t about not doing the mission, it’s about parting from you while you rest on a neighboring planet. Do you really think I’m going to bail on you?”

The girl took a few deep breathes, calming her rage. “No, I don’t think you’ll bail, but I don’t think you’re taking this mission seriously enough.”

“Hey, I take everything seriously, even if I don’t look like it. That’s why I have to leave you guys for awhile. Even if Albel and I didn’t look serious before, we’ve been getting serious.”

“How serious?”

He fixed her with a stoic stare. “I’m starting to look for rings, serious. We’ve been going through some difficult things, but Albel is opening up. And I need to be there for him.”

There was a long pause. Maria turned away from the man and started to pace the floor, thinking. She would occasionally glance back at Cliff, her eyes narrow and accusing, then turn away. The man kept quiet, knowing well that it was best to let her brood uninterrupted.

Finally, the girl sighed loudly. She flipped her long blue hair over her shoulder and strode back to Cliff. “Alright. When we get within two days of Rossary, you can take the Eagle to Elicoor. You can stay there for three days, then you MUST meet us at Rossary. We’re only staying there for a week. If you don’t show up, I’m naming you an abandoner.”

Cliff grinned then leaned down and took the girl under the arms, twirled her around, then hugged her. Maria let out a surprised yell.

“What are you doing?!”

“I’m happy! I’m going to see my baby!”

“Your baby?”

Cliff put the girl down and hastily left the room, eagerly chanting to himself about how he would see his sweetheart soon. The few people in the hallway eyed him oddly. When he was gone, Maria continued to stare at the closed door. She did not know what had been happening between Cliff and Albel, but it was more serious than she had ever thought it was or could be. As she reflected on the visit she had just had, one question kept running through her mind: what had Albel done to Cliff?

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He had left the crew on slightly unpleasant terms. No few people thought he was abandoning the mission, a cowardly act for the founder of Quark and a man who was famed for opposing injustice. Cliff shook his head. Whatever. He didn’t have to offer explanations. He would be back in a few days; even if he wasn’t, what was wrong with having his priorities changing? Did they all want to be tied to Quark and anarchy-raising forever? Maybe he had once thought that he would want that, but ending up on Elicoor had changed his opinion.

And speaking of the tiny rock of a planet…it had appeared on the eagle’s radar and it was beginning to grow in size on screen. The planet had never looked more welcoming. Even if half of the planet was covered in ice, there was something down there that made braving that miserable weather more than worth it.

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It was stupid, the lengths he went to while preparing for Cliff. He had made certain the apartments were clean, the sheets were washed and fresh, hell he had even taken a bath and scrubbed the filth from his body and hair. All that for the big dumb ox. It had seemed pointless and a waste of a day, but the second he heard the hard rapping of knuckles on his door, the captain was on his feet, walking quickly to the door, straightening his clothes and tugging knots out of his hair. H felt like a foolish schoolgirl about to talk to her crush.

As he stood in front of the door, Albel took a deep breath, let his hands drop to his sides, then opened the door. There was a long moment of silence. Cliff stood still, looking the young man over, then smiled. Albel stepped aside to let him inside.

“You can put your bag in the bedroom.” He instructed.

Cliff nodded, doing just that. When he came back out, Albel was sitting on the settee by the fireplace. It had been pulled away from the wall since the last time he had been there. It looked awfully comfortable in front of the fire, especially considering who was sitting on it. When Cliff went over, he sank down into the cushion, eyes fixed on Albel’s face. The captain glanced at him then quickly turned his head away. When Albel refused to look at him, the man gently took his chin in hand and turned his head. Vermillion eyes blinked at him, surprised first, then they went blank.

“I missed you, ‘Bel.” The man said before leaning forward and kissing the captain.

Albel stiffened, lips unyielding. When he felt the young man tense, Cliff pulled away and frowned. It was on the tip of his tongue to ask what had upset the young man, but the words did not come. Instead, he sat back on the settee and stared at the fire across from them.

They were silent for what seemed like an eternity, neither one sure of exactly what to say. When a good twenty minutes passed, Albel stood and began to walk to the kitchen. He glanced over his shoulder and said in an indifferent, even tone,

“I’m making dinner. Go get unpacked.”

All the man could do was nod and retreat to the bedroom. He hadn’t packed much except a few sets of spares clothes and he tucked those into the dresser where, once upon a time, he used to keep his clothes. It was heartwarming and a little sad to see that Albel had kept his side of the dresser clean, ready for someone to put their clothes in the space. Part of him said that Albel had been waiting for him to return, but the wiser, less egotistical part said that Albel had been too hurt to deal with moving things around after they had split apart. At least no one had found their way into his spot while he had been gone.

To take up some time, Cliff began to rummage around the room, curious to see what had become of the life they had shared. There were many bare, empty spots where he had kept things. Albel had not made an effort to fill in his life where Cliff had left holes. He supposed Albel took time to move on. The captain had taken nine years to begin getting over Glou Nox’s death and while they were together that self-loathing over his father’s death had resurfaced over and over again. But it had gotten better. He wondered if Albel had held hatred for him after they ended their relationship that had resurfaced over and over again, like with Glou.

Albel entered the room while Cliff was looking in the bed stand’s drawer, searching for the many things they used in love play. Those were gone. Bad memories for the young man, he supposed.

“Looking for something?” Albel asked, clearly annoyed.

The man quickly slammed the drawer shut. “No, just looking for a place to put my communicator.”

Judging from the look on his face, Albel could tell that was a lie. “Dinner is ready.”

Before he could say anything, the captain had turned on his heel and left the room. Cliff sighed and got up from the bed, dusted off his pants, and went into the kitchen. The food was waiting on the table and Albel was already chewing on a piece of meat. He did not glance up at Cliff.

The rest of their dinner proceeded in a similar manner. Occasionally, they would catch eyes and Cliff would smile. Albel would look away. The food was still as good as the man remembered; the cooks in the castle spared no expense. A little voice inside of him whispered that Albel had probably told the servants to make the meal special, but he knew better than to believe that. He couldn’t even get the captain to look at him and each time they locked eyes, he saw a distinctly unhappy look in the young man’s eyes.

Cliff prayed that returning to Elicoor did not turn out to be a bad idea.

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Albel was doing all he could to stave off time, to keep himself distracted. He was well aware that Cliff was sitting on a bar stool at the counter, watching him scrub furiously at the dishes. When they were clean, he spent more time than necessary drying them. When there was nothing else left for him to do, Albel turned back to the man and fixed him with a stern look. Cliff perked up when he saw that the captain was finally looking at him.

“It’s late,” Albel said. “We should go to sleep.”

“Oh. Yeah, if that’s what you want. I guess it was a long ride here for me.” He paused and looked at the sette. “Do you want me to sleep out here?”

Albel growled at him. “No. You sleep with me.”

Cliff nodded. They climbed into bed together, carefully avoiding any physical contact, wary of how the other would react. It was not a particularly good night’s rest for the Klausian and when he woke, he found he was alone in bed. A search of the apartment found Albel huddled at the end of the settee in the large room. The embers of the fire had gone out and the captain was buried in the folds of a thick blanket. It looked like Albel had woken up early to eat and had sat down by the fire and promptly fallen back asleep. Cliff guessed neither of them had slept very well.

He sat down next to Albel and wrapped an arm around him, pulling the smaller body close. Albel opened his eyes, looked at Cliff, and then rested his head on the man’s shoulder.

The rest of the day, the captain was not nearly as receptive to affection. When they took a stroll through the castle to visit the king and several other important members of hierarchy, Albel refused to stand within three feet of Cliff. He would not even deign to touch him when they were in private. It was confusing, to start the day with a nice snuggle on the couch then to receive the cold shoulder.

Dinner was no better. Albel said few words as he set the table and they ate. For the rest of the evening, they sat by the fire, hardly speaking. Cliff’s desperate attempts at conversation fell flat on the floor by the young man’s monosyllabic responses. By the time it came for them to retire to bed, Cliff had little hope of a pleasant rest. They had barely touched since he returned, hardly spoken, and Albel seemed disinclined to do either. It drove the man mad and dominated his thoughts until he couldn’t think of anything other than his lover’s refusal to look at or touch him; sleep would be impossible. His time on Elicoor was dwindling away and the man was beginning to fear it had been a wasted trip.

Cliff mulled that fear over in his head as he started to trudge to the bedroom. When he entered, he cast a glance at the bed then to Albel who was lighting a lantern by the bed.

“What are you doing that for?” He asked, unzipping his shirt and draping it over the back of a chair.

Albel did not respond. He looked over his shoulder then waved the match in his fingers out.

The bed hardly seemed to move as Albel slid in next to him. The captain weighed so little that sometimes the man had entertained the idea of sitting Albel down on his lap and force feeding him some of the fattier foods found on Elicoor.

When a small hand ran cross his bare chest, Cliff jumped. He looked over, his surprise clearly written on his face, and found Albel lying on his chest, looking at the man with hooded eyes.

“Albel?”

Albel did not respond; he sat up, allowing the blankets to fall from his body, and shifted closer to Cliff. Despite his shock, Cliff was capable of comprehending the situation and he saw that Albel was naked. It was blatantly obvious what the Elicoorian wanted.

When the captain started to lean forward, the man put his hands on Albel’s shoulders, forcing him away. “What are you doing?”

The young man looked quizzical for a moment. “I would think it clear.”

“It is clear, but you’ve barely said a word to me the entire time I’ve been here. You haven’t seemed to want to be around me. Why the sudden change in mood? You still have a lot of explaining to do. I want the whole story.”

There was silence. Albel stared at the Klausian, assessing him. Suddenly, he felt ridiculous and he reached for the blanket, pulling it around his shoulders. They sat there, staring at each other for a minute before Albel adverted his eyes, resolutely refusing to look at Cliff.

“You don’t get the whole story. Not yet.” Albel said firmly. When he turned back to Cliff, he ground out, “I want to fuck you now because I’m ready to let you come back to me.”

Cliff sighed and ran his hands down the captain’s arms. “Why won’t you tell me the rest of the story now?”

“Because I don’t want to tell you right now.”

“Why?”

“Because I don’t want to ruin the short time we have, although you’re doing a perfectly wonderful job of that yourself!”

The man put up his hands. “Alright, alright, relax.” He stopped, took a big gulp of air, and let it out slowly. “So, you won’t tell me now; will you tell me later, before I leave?”

“No.” Albel said, then added, “Once you leave, I’ll tell you the rest.”

“I really hate playing this game, Albel. I don’t understand why you’re being so secretive.” When he looked up, Cliff noticed the fire burning in the young man’s eyes. It was an angry fire, but it was also sad. The man shook his head and leaned forward to embrace the Elicoorian. “But I’ll humor you for a little longer. Just a little longer. I can’t hold on forever though, ‘Bel.”

Albel was rigid in his arms, and then slowly he relaxed and wrapped his own arms around the man’s broad back. “I know…I’ll tell you. Soon. But not tonight.”

“Ok, baby.” He nuzzled Albel’s neck. “I missed feeling you like this.”

Cliff squeezed the young man a little, relishing the feel of the Elicoorian’s soft flesh. It felt wonderful to run his fingers down Albel’s smooth back and tangle in his silky hair. The body in his arms shivered. He had missed feeling his young lover like this.

The feel of Cliff’s fingers running over his body felt foreign after so long apart. It had been a year since they had parted and then he had unceremoniously kicked the Klausian out when the man had tried to reconcile. Albel dimly wondered if it had really been that long since he had been intimate with Cliff—with anyone. When he realized that it had indeed been that long, the floodgates that had been holding his desire in check cracked and broke. The need was so sudden that it sent a convulsion of pleasure through his limbs.

Albel sank his nails into Cliff’s back and moved, placing himself directly in the man’s lap. Cliff was a bit surprised by the action, but the captain could tell by the hardness prodding at his thigh that Cliff was as excited as he was. The young man reached a hand between them, worming it into the Klausian’s pants and pulling out his cock.

There was a hiss of indrawn breath as Cliff felt cool fingers wrap around his cock. He stiffened in Albel’s hand, blood rushing to his groin, body eager to reacquaint itself with his lover. Albel pumped his cock slowly, running fingers up the thick shaft, rubbing the leaking moisture from the tip across the swollen head. The man let the sensations crest over his body in waves before pausing briefly to struggle out of his pants. Then he was grabbing Albel’s hand and placing it back on his cock.

The Elicoorian shifted backwards to look at the cock in his hand. He let out a low, pleased, keening sound. “I forgot how big you get.” There was hunger in his eyes.

The man laughed, thrusting up into the captain’s grip. “And I forgot how good you were at playing my body; I’m so hard it hurts. Or maybe that’s just because I haven’t fucked you in ages.”

“It’s both.” The young man replied, leaning forward and kissing Cliff’s lips softly.

Large arms wrapped around the captain’s waist, pulling him closer. Cliff smiled into the kiss, elated to be receiving such affection. Even if he was used to the cold shoulder, it was depressing to always be ignored. He slipped a hand down Albel’s back and dug his fingers into the captain’s firm behind. Albel grunted appreciatively, removed his hand from the man’s cock, wrapped his arms round his neck, and pushed his erection against Cliff’s bare stomach.

“You’re excited too, huh, baby?”

The young man bit playfully at his ear. “Why are you using idiotic pet names?”

Cliff bit back, sinking his teeth into the column of Albel’s neck. “Because I want to.” He punctuated his statement with a thrust against the young man’s bare behind.

The feel of the man’s cock brushing against the cleft of his ass pulled a strangled whimper from the Elicoorian’s lips. Albel leaned away, arching his back, and moaned long and low. When he leaned forward again, he gripped Cliff’s arm and commanded,

“Get inside of me.”

“God, I thought you’d never ask.”

Without a moment’s hesitation, the man grabbed Albel by the hips, lifted him up, and flipped them over so that the young man was lying in the center of the bed, hair loose and fanning across the pillows. Albel looked up at him, desire gone for a moment, searching the man’s eyes. Cliff blinked down at him, then took the captain’s scarred hand in his and brought it to his lips.

“I love you, Albel. I think you know that. And I’m not going to leave you or hurt you. Ever.”

The Elicoorian scoffed, blushing, and turned his head away. “Don’t say such disgusting drivel.” He looked back. “I already know all of that. And you know what I’d say too.”

Cliff’s eyes widened. That was the closest to a love admission that he had ever gotten and perhaps would ever get. Before he could muster a response, Albel spread his thighs invitingly and pulled insistently on Cliff’s cock. That was all the signal he needed.

After leaning down and pressing a quick kiss to the Elicoorian’s cheek, Cliff took the young man’s thighs and hefted them onto his upper arms. He pushed his hips forward, carefully using his hand to guide the tip of his cock to his lover’s waiting body.

The muscles in Albel’s body tensed when he felt the wet tip of Cliff’s cock pressing against his opening, trying to worm inside. He grinned and took Cliff in hand once more, helping him slowly enter. The man hissed and tensed as well, body tingling at the tightness he was pushing into.

It took some time, longer than it normally did, for Cliff to get fully seated inside his lover. Albel was much tighter than he remembered him being and he wanted to be sure he didn’t hurt the slim captain.

“You’re so tight. You must not have gotten much action since I was gone.”

He laughed, but when he saw the anger flash in Albel’s eyes, he knew he had made a mistake. Apparently, he had hit a nerve.

“Fuck me or get off me.”

“Sorry, I—”

“Fuck me or get off me.” Albel repeated, voice tightening threateningly.

Fucking sounded like a much better option and he had missed being that close to his lover. Cliff moved the Elicoorian’s legs to his waist and hunched forward, arms on either side of Albel’s shoulders, and pressed in as far as he could. He lowered himself down carefully and rested his weight on his elbows as he pressed their bodies against each other. Albel gasped at the feel of the man buried deep inside of him and he threaded his fingers through the man’s thick hair, tugging enthusiastically.

They began slowly at first, getting back into the rhythm they once had. Cliff pulled out a few inches then pushed back in, body reacquainting itself with the feel of the captain’s wonderfully tight passage. He closed his eyes, watching the light dance behind his eyes at the feel of Albel’s tightness rippling around his cock. For awhile, he enjoyed the blissful feel of being lost inside his lover’s body.

Without thinking, Cliff began to move quicker, thrusting harder, dragging surprised gasps and moans from Albel’s lips. He felt the Elicoorian shudder and convulse occasionally, and a small, slender hand moved to cup his behind, then reached between his legs to massage his dangling balls. Cliff jerked, surprised, then laughed and leaned down to kiss the captain again.

Albel pulled the man down for a longer kiss and bit at the man’s lips. Cliff slammed into him in retaliation, but that only encouraged the young man to force his tongue down Cliff’s throat.

When he managed to pull away, the Klausian growled lustily, “Do something like that again and I’ll spank your ass.”

There was a soft purring sound coming from deep in Albel’s throat before nails ranked down Cliff’s sides. It stung for a moment and given the warning he had just given, Cliff felt it only appropriate to pause briefly, wrestle Albel onto his lap, and deliver a few stinging blows of his own.

Before Albel could recover, the man took advantage of the change in position and pushed the thin captain onto his knees. He slipped back inside of the young man and resumed their previous activities. As he thrust, Cliff was surprised to hear a soft laugh escape the young man’s mouth.

“You like that, ‘Bel?” He asked, pushing in deeper and quickening his pace.

Albel moaned in the affirmative, angling his hips so that each time Cliff thrust into him, the man brushed against his sweet spot. He bit his lip, pushing back. It had been so long since had been intimate and with someone as powerful as Cliff—it felt good. Each hard thrust hit him perfectly and made his muscles tense and untense and sent cascades of ecstasy streaming through his limbs. Albel dug his fingers into the covers, groaning at the blissful sensations that were crashing over him.

With Cliff behind him, fucking him with force and strength enough to drive him into the mattress, Albel lost control and slipped over the edge within minutes. He yelped loudly, muscles clamping down around the man’s cock, and spurted hard onto the bed covers. Cliff held onto his hips, holding him steady as he rode out his climax then all of the muscles in Albel’s body relaxed and he slumped forward. The man finished shortly after, thrusting into the captain’s tightened passage and spilling his seed deep in the young man’s body.

Once the last waves of their orgasm had gone and their quivering had ceased, Cliff carefully pushed Albel onto his side and settled next to him. He draped an arm over the captain’s slim body then pulled him close. Albel nestled into his warmth, pressing his forehead against the man’s shoulder. They stayed like that for some time, running their hands over each other and pressing affectionate kisses to the other’s skin.

The chill of the night effected Albel first and when he started to shiver slightly, Cliff urged him under the covers, where they huddled for warmth. Albel reached out of the bed and squashed the flame in the lantern. The room plunged into darkness and Cliff could only find Albel by feeling along the bed for his small frame. He pulled the captain back into an embrace, but Albel kept his back to him.

Once his eyes had adjusted to the darkness minutes later, Cliff leaned up onto his elbow and peered at his lover.

“Albel?”

He received no answer. After a moment of silence, the man leaned closer, listening to the sound of the young man breathing. Albel’s breath was shallow and even; he was fast asleep.

Cliff sighed and settled into the bed again; he would talk to Albel tomorrow.

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When he woke up the next morning, Albel was gone from the bed. The smell of breakfast was wafting in through the bedroom door and the smell drew Cliff like a moth to a flame. Albel glanced up from the stove when the man entered; the Elicoorian blinked at him and returned to cooking some type of meat.

“Morning.” Cliff said, taking a seat at the table, testing the day’s atmosphere.

Albel grunted and skewered the meat and plopped the slices onto a plate. He brought the plate to the table, along with some fried eggs and toast. The man looked at the plate hopefully. The food was placed in the center of the table then nudged ever so slightly towards Cliff; an offering. Cliff took it with great pleasure.

The meal turned out to be pleasant, despite the lack of conversation. Once the table was cleared and the dishes were waiting in the hall for the servants to take and wash, Albel looked over his shoulder and silently commanded Cliff to follow him. He did so, curiously watching the captain’s expression in an effort to read his mood and discover where they were going.

Albel led him through the castle halls and to a secluded courtyard.

“You should have told me we were going outside; I would have pulled on my coat.”

The courtyard was quiet, so he surmised that Albel had brought him there for a private discussion. He wondered for a moment why they were in the courtyard talking and not the captain’s apartments. Then a thought flitted through his head; Albel hated being copped up in one place for too long, so he likely wanted to take a stroll. Still, a warning about the cold would have been nice. It was freezing, though the temperature did not seem to be bothering the Elicoorian.

Albel ignored the comment and said, “You leave tomorrow.” It was not a question.

The man nodded, wrapping his arms around himself and rubbing his muscles for warmth. “Yeah. I don’t know how long I’ll be gone. Could be a month, could be a few months.”

“I see.”

“Is that going to be a problem?” A small thrill of worry shot through his gut.

The young man paused in his walking and turned to face Cliff. “What do you intend on doing once this mission is complete?”

There was a tense silence. They had come to the heart of the matter; it was the moment that mattered most and Cliff knew his answer would either destroy their relationship or give it life once again. He sighed and stepped forward, fixing Albel with a serious expression.

“I can’t honestly say, Albel. A lot of it depends on how we get along. Last night was incredible, but we’ve hardly spoken to each other since I got here. It’s like you’re incapable of speaking to me when I’m physically in front of you. Is that true?”

“No, it is not true, you moronic ox.” Albel huffed angrily.

“Then why are you avoiding talking to me? How can I decide that I want to spend the rest of my life with you if you won’t sit down and talk to me about what you want?”

There was another, longer pause.

The captain scowled. “You know what I want; I shouldn’t have to tell you that. I told you what I wanted a year ago when you first made your promise—which you broke, may I remind you. Can you blame me for not wanting to get too close to you again, considering how you disappointed me before?”

That hit Cliff right in the heart. It took him a moment to find words. “I understand, and I can’t apologize for that, but you have to know that this is what I want. I want you.”

He took a step forward to close the distance between them but Albel was already moving, advancing on him with a scowl. The captain stuck out an accusatory finger and pointed at him.

“You wanted me before. What’s different now? You aren’t trustworthy.”

“Don’t say that!”

“It’s true, maggot.”

“It’s not!”

“Don’t argue with me, ox. You—”

He was cut off by a pair of lips smashing against his own. Albel struggled against the sudden and undignified kiss, but his clawing and flailing did little to throw the man off, indeed it only made Cliff tighten his grip. When the man finally pulled away, keeping his arms locked around the Elicoorian’s waist, Albel glared, ashamed of the blush that was splashed on his cheeks. He slapped the man.

“How dare you, worm!”

Cliff kissed him again.

When they parted once more, the fight had gone out of the young man, but his body remained rigid in Cliff’s arms.

After pressing a kiss to Albel’s forehead, the Klausian sighed in his ear and whispered,

“I fucked up. Big time. I can’t deny it. But you need to know that I paid for it; I didn’t have you. And I want you to know that I want you. I want you to be mine. I don’t want to break promises to you like that creep Vox did. Give me another chance.”

The captain scoffed softly. “And if I gave you a second chance, how do I know you won’t fuck up again and destroy me?”

“You don’t know.” Cliff admitted, giving him a squeeze. “But I have no intention of disappointing you. And if you give me that second chance, then, to answer your original question, this mission will be my last. I’ll come home and do whatever you want me to.”

Cliff leaned in for a kiss, but he was shoved roughly away. For a moment, he feared that he had been rejected.

Albel pushed past him and said, “Promises, promises.” He turned, pinning the man with a withering glare. “If you fail to make good on his chance, you can count on me tracking you down and hacking you to pieces and drinking your blood.”

There was a look of horror on Cliff’s face for a split second before he darted across the expanse of the courtyard and grabbed Albel up, mashing their lips together yet again. Albel struggled as before, but the fight died quickly. They stayed out there, kissing and shivering in the cold, until a group of soldiers entered the courtyard. They went scrambling away after a short scream and snarl from Albel and the two lovers returned to their room where they could continue without interruption.

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The servants delivered a large, grand meal to the captain’s room later that evening and Albel was certain to tell them in very clear terms that anyone who came to his room that evening would suffer a miserable and slow death. After sending the girls scrambling away to spread the word, he slammed the door shut and locked it tightly. Cliff grinned at him from the table, laughing over his lover’s eccentric manners.

Once dinner was over, they sat in front of the fire and drank a bottle of wine that Woltar had sent over the day before when he heard that Cliff had returned.

“I’m going to miss you when I leave.” Cliff said, placing his half-empty glass on a nearby table. He looked at Albel. “You should come with me.”

The captain shook his head. “I belong here.”

“There’s no war, they can spare you!”

“There’s more to my role here than war, Cliff. This is where I belong and where I’m needed.”

The man tried to be playful, “But I need you too!”

“Drink your wine, Cliff, then go get into bed and wait for me. Asshole.”

The man sighed and picked his glass up. At least he had tried, but he was still disappointed in Albel’s answer. After gulping down his drink, the man leaned over, kissed a scowling Elicoorian, and went to obediently wait in bed for his lover. When Albel entered a short while later, he slipped his clothes off, blew the light out, and slide in beside Cliff.

They curled up as they had the previous night, except Albel turned to face the man. Once they were settled, Cliff thought they were going to go to sleep. Instead, he felt fingers inch up his arm playfully and felt the hair by his ear stir as Albel leaned close and whispered possessively,

“My mate.”

Cliff shivered then wrapped his arms around the Elicoorian’s waist. He had one last night with his lover and his body was eager to make use of the time. After struggling out of his clothes, he kissed the young man and then whispered to Albel, just as possessively as the captain had said to him,

“My mate.”

~END

Another chapter that took awhile to write. I feel like teaching and reading badly written kids’ work has made my own brain go numb and my writing skills fly away. I do intend on finishing this, it’s just a matter of time and inspiration. I have some of it mapped out, so I have a direction I’m going in. At least this chapter is long.

ANYWAY, I issue a challenge to any and all Cliff/Albel fans: write or draw Cliff/Albel smut. I am in dire need of new stuff to read and I need inspiration desperately. If a challenge doesn’t work, then I implore you on my knees to write/draw. I need more Cliff/Albel! I can’t do it alone! And on that pathetic note…review please!