Chapter Text
After the usual disinfection procedures aboard the sleek Auroran vessel departing for Earth, Elijah Baley was in his room distractedly undressing and putting on sleep attire that had just been handed to him by a robot. His room was yet more comfortable and luxurious than the one provided for his arrival, perhaps owing to Fastolfe’s influence, but he only dimly noticed. He was too deep in thought.
He’d only been away from Earth for a few days, yet he felt like he was returning as a different person somehow. The usual relief of going home was tempered by unease from their victory over Amadiro, and from certain disturbing aspects of the case. The events of the past few days now converged upon his mind in a moment of solitude. His mind was still swirling when he finally slipped into a restless sleep...
There was a soft sound of weeping. A glowing wall was ahead of him, spotlighting the cot that lay before it. He was in Jander’s room. Pitch blackness lay beyond the light and a chill hung in the air, causing gooseflesh on his arms.
Almost automatically he stepped forward to the illuminated cot, where the smooth shiny sheath was draped fully over the body. As he drew closer the weeping grew louder, and something about it was highly disquieting. Why did it sound so familiar?
He was now beside the cot and reached out, his own hand glowing palely in the light as he pulled at the sheath. It only yielded slightly.
With both hands, he gripped it and tugged.
It abruptly tore free of the body and he stumbled backwards, still holding on to the sheath. The weeping intensified and he almost turned to look for the source, but something about the body caught his eye. It didn't seem right.
He looked down at the ethereally glowing face and was seized by a jolt of horror.
It wasn’t Jander. It was Daneel! Eyes open, staring vacantly—
He tried to scream but no scream came forth. The weeping, which had now ascended into a full wailing cry, was his own voice.
Before he could do anything else, he felt the sheath moving in his hands, apparently of its own accord. Instinctively, he clung on to it harder, but it slipped from his weakened grasp and vanished into the dimness.
He felt himself shaking, shaking helplessly. It seemed like the world itself was shaking.
He crumpled to the floor with a silent shout and the room went dark.
A warm weight was upon him now, but he wasn’t afraid of it. It was strangely soothing, like a womb; like a cocoon. He heard a faraway voice that seemed to be drifting nearer. What was it saying? He strained to make out the words. He recognised just two, but they were all he needed.
“Friend Elijah!”
His eyes snapped open.
Daneel’s concerned blue eyes—bright and moist instead of opaque and lustreless as he'd just seen—hovered over him as they often had, but they were mere inches away this time.
“You were having a nightmare,” Daneel stated.
Elijah blinked in confusion. Why was Daneel's face so close to his? He tried to move to sit up but couldn't. He glanced down and saw that Daneel was lying on top of him in his bed, which was missing his blanket.
Mortified, he choked out in a strangled voice, “Get off me!”
Daneel instantly did so and knelt by the bed instead. “I apologize for having to restrain you. You were struggling and could have hurt yourself. You calmed down when I assumed that position.”
Elijah sat up, now fully awake and red with embarrassment. He frowned. “How did you know to come in?”
“I heard you calling my name. Are you well now?” Daneel asked.
Jehoshaphat, either Daneel had really good hearing or he’d been loud enough to be heard from the next room, Elijah thought. He earnestly hoped it was the former. “I’m fine.”
Daneel’s concerned expression didn’t fully fade. “May I ask a question?”
“Go on.”
“You once had a nightmare about your wife and you called out her name then. What was your nightmare about just now?”
Elijah recalled the nightmare Daneel referred to. He’d dreamt he pushed Jessie into the fission chamber of a nuclear power plant, when staying with Daneel during their first case.
Chagrined at his evident overreaction this time, he confessed tersely, “It was about examining Jander’s body. But it was your body instead.”
Daneel gazed at him thoughtfully. “Is there a reason for this nightmare? Previously, it seemed like it was because you did not want to consider Jessie a suspect despite the clues we had.”
“I was just thinking about—“ Elijah paused for a moment before he went on, “—about the case.”
“The case? But you have already solved it, friend Elijah,” said Daneel, still kneeling by his bedside.
“Come, let’s sit over there,” Elijah got out of bed and moved to the plush dining booth.
Daneel seated himself, straight-backed, across from Elijah.
Elijah asked, “Tell me, Daneel, in your opinion, do you think Jander loved Gladia?”
“This I cannot say. As I have told you before, I did not have the occasion to observe him in Miss Gladia’s company, but I am fully certain that he carried out his duties to the best of his ability and would have been satisfied to do so,” said Daneel.
“You don’t deny the possibility that Jander could’ve felt love?”
“I can neither confirm nor deny the possibility. No two positronic brains are alike, and we were two individuals. However, I can say that it did not appear to me that Miss Gladia loved him.”
Unsettled by this unexpected response, Elijah demanded sharply, “What makes you say that?”
“It is my feeling that she felt a sense of attachment that was rooted in desire but not quite amounting to love.”
Elijah frowned and said, “No, you’re mistaken. You saw her. Her emotion was genuine.”
“It was, but that does not disprove my hypothesis. According to your interview with her—which I heard from the next room—it is clear to me that Miss Gladia placed a heavy emphasis on sexual fulfillment rather than general companionship or intimacy, even though she appreciated your kindness and affection. For example, she said she had never before experienced such infinite care for her enjoyment as friend Jander provided. Also, in response to your question if they quarreled, she said she could not have since friend Jander’s only reason for existence was to please her. Her choice of wording relates more to lust than love. It strongly implies that her loss is that of her own gratification, not of friend Jander’s company.”
Appalled, Elijah cried, “But she thought of him as a husband!”
“As she explained to you, the term is used by Aurorans after a duration of cohabitation. She never said she loved him. It was you who suggested she must have learned to love if she realised that touching your cheek brought her close to orgasm. Love and sex are not mutually inclusive, but you conflated the two. She also limited their time together so that she would not get tired of him, as you mentioned to me after you examined friend Jander. Would somebody in love grow tired of their partner so easily—so soon? Such a concern would seem more typical of someone who craves novelty or the exotic, wishing to preserve the thrill. The final point that supports my view, and in my opinion the strongest one, is that Miss Gladia thought of friend Jander not as a man—just as she thought of you as subhuman—and this was the very reason she was able to overcome her sexual inhibitions. All this does not fit with your definition of love.”
Elijah bristled at the reminder of Gladia’s words, at Daneel’s insinuation that Gladia had used him like she’d used Jander.
His bitterness turned to savagery and he snapped, “My definition of love! Just what exactly do you think that is?”
Daneel replied calmly, his nerveless gaze unwavering, “I believe I understand how you personally define it, based on my knowledge of you and from your questions to Miss Gladia, such as asking if it might have disturbed her that friend Jander only pleased her because he had to. You define love as a bond of mutual trust, respect, and care. With regards to being lovers, then it must be consensual—as equals. If I am wrong, tell me so.”
Startled by Daneel’s astute assessment and perceptiveness, Elijah took a moment to quell his resentment and gather his thoughts. He was unfairly lashing out at Daneel who had done nothing except answer him with a well thought out and eloquent argument.
He softened and admitted, “You’re right. That is my definition, Daneel.”
Daneel said nothing, his expression currently unreadable.
Eyeing Daneel curiously, Elijah asked, “By this definition, have you ever entertained the prospect of you yourself being mutually in love with a human and—” he hesitated before continuing “—and being lovers?”
“No, I have not,” Daneel stated simply.
Of course he hasn’t, thought Elijah. He asked, “Well, what do you think of it?”
After a long pause of contemplation, Daneel said, “The idea is interesting, but I do not think it probable. Also, the uncertainty of not always knowing the correct action to take would make me uneasy.”
Elijah peered at him more closely in the dim lighting, intrigued. “Why wouldn’t you know the correct action to take?”
“I would not know how my actions would be received. I may inadvertently cause offense, or some other harm.”
“Ah. Believe me, humans don’t know much better than you do.” Elijah thought of his own marriage, propped up by mere force of habit. He continued, “Such a relationship should be able to survive well-intentioned missteps anyway. I don’t see why it would be any different from right now, for instance. I think you’d do just fine.”
Daneel bowed his head slightly, “I will take your word for it, friend Elijah.”
“Have you ever desired something for yourself—anything at all—and acted upon it?”
“Indeed I have. If you recall when I visited your office on Earth for help with the two mathematicians, it was because I wished to shake your hand. I felt that hypervision contact was insufficient, having known you.”
“How could I forget?” Elijah quirked a smile. “See, visiting me in person wasn’t strictly necessary for your conundrum, yet you decided to do it anyway because you knew it would be mutually satisfying. Or at least satisfying for yourself, and harmless to me. So you would know the right action to take, in a way.”
“I see what you mean,” Daneel agreed with a small nod.
“You have some personal freedom to do as you choose, right?”
“That is so! The Three Laws of Robotics are designed to enable a degree of autonomy. I am permitted, at all times, to exercise my personal agency insofar as my actions do not conflict with the Laws. I also informed you during my visit to your office that I have permission, when on board ship, to make such decisions like visiting Earth without veto by any human being apart from the captain.”
“And you can also disagree with certain orders depending on their strength, is that right? Like how you didn’t want to leave me alone in the airfoil, or stay behind at Gladia’s establishment while she and Giskard came out to search for me?”
“Yes. I try to understand the purpose of any order, and I have made my disagreements known to you before, friend Elijah. You yourself have sometimes found ways around my orders to protect you,” said Daneel with a sigh. “As friend Giskard and I say, human behaviour is often illogical to us.” He added, with his small affectionate smile, “But I find that it can be quite an admirable quality.”
Was there a hint of amusement in Daneel’s calm eyes? The corners of Elijah’s mouth quirked up as he retreated into private thought for a moment to recall the many times Daneel (politely) interrupted, or counter-argued a point, or insisted on something firmly, or simply did things. He’d once resented Daneel’s protectiveness, but knowing that his partner acted partly out of personal choice had made all the difference in the world.
In the past few days, Daneel had expressed those feelings by his own admission. Firstly, Daneel said he would risk his life for Elijah even if it were not for his programming, and Elijah shocked himself by saying that he’d rather risk his own life than Daneel’s. Secondly, in their moment of danger, Daneel had interrupted Vasilia to say he placed Elijah’s welfare over hers, and that his choice in the matter arose not just from Fastolfe’s instructions to protect Elijah, or because they were partners in their investigation, but also because they were friends (Daneel seemed to have surprised himself by saying that). Again Elijah had followed Daneel’s lead, declaring that they were bound by friendship, warning Vasilia not to test the force of their love (to his own surprise).
Elijah continued sanguinely, “So it seems like the Laws would not be an obstacle for you. What about Dr. Fastolfe?”
“I am bound to obey the Three Laws of Robotics in the manner that you already know. They do not preclude me from partaking in a relationship of the nature we have described. As for Dr. Fastolfe, I believe he would be supportive. Apart from assigning me to investigate cases with you on these rare occasions, he does not usually require my assistance. He prefers Giskard.”
Giskard, thought Elijah. Of course he’d forgotten Giskard. Had anything else in his mind been tampered with? He did a quick mental self-examination and was relieved to find that his thoughts and feelings about Daneel remained as potent as ever—there seemed to be no interference. If Giskard did know (which seemed practically guaranteed), he’d either chosen not to intervene or had been unable to do so without causing damage. Elijah was fully certain it was the latter.
He remembered something else. “Gladia mentioned that the First Law includes prevention of emotional harm. Does it?”
“The threat of all injury must always be weighed against other forms of potential injury. One example is the incident at the shoe store during our first case on Earth, when I was able to threaten to use deadly force on the mob and aim my blaster on them, feinting that it was charged, in order to enforce law and order.”
“Jehoshaphat, I remember that…” Elijah murmured. One of his earliest impressions of Daneel was of how his personality dominated that situation at the shoe counter. A quietly formidable person, he’d thought then. He still thought so now.
He felt a twinge of sympathy that Gladia’s need might’ve been desperate enough for disappointment to count as harm; that it might’ve compelled Jander to act, possibly even without the use of orders. But Gladia had insisted that Jander had been happy fulfilling his duties, and Daneel had confirmed that. She had argued that the reason anybody does anything is that they have no choice, one way or another. Perhaps she was right about that. Did Santirix Gremionis have any choice but to feel how he felt towards her, regardless of whether she felt the same? Elijah could certainly relate to that. Did it matter if a person’s programming was encoded in genes or positrons?
Gladia had also said that except for Jander and Daneel, no robots on any planet—on Solaria or Earth or Aurora—were designed to give any but the most primitive sexual satisfaction, and that she’d never learnt to give intimately with Jander, only to receive. Was it somehow possible for Jander and Daneel to receive such pleasure? Daneel had once said on Solaria, while suspecting Gladia of seducing Elijah, that he was impervious to such human stimuli as physical attractiveness. But there was a difference between being attracted to physical appearance and being able to feel pleasure, wasn’t there? And didn’t Daneel say he felt pleasure in Elijah’s company?
“Do you know if Jander would’ve been able to enjoy sex?” asked Elijah, a bit embarrassed even though he knew Daneel would reply prosaically. He wondered if Daneel would catch the rather blatant implication of the question: Would you?
“Why, if by that you mean experiencing analogous counterparts to human responses to sexual stimuli, such as arousal and climax, then I cannot answer. I do not have direct programming of this knowledge.”
Elijah thought darkly: Nuts, what the dickens am I doing asking a robot if they can enjoy sex? Asking Daneel?
But Daneel continued, “I can only speak from my own limited personal experience of social connection and physical contact, which give me sensations that roughly correspond to human pleasure. I assume such pleasure might also be induced with sexual activity. Physically, friend Jander functioned in the same way as I, and our skin was modeled on human skin, with the ability to detect temperature, touch, vibration, and other sensations—except for pain.”
The last statement reminded Elijah of the nightmare he’d just had. Had it been Daneel instead who had been loaned to Gladia…
Elijah shuddered internally and felt acute appreciation that Daneel was sitting alive and well before him, gazing at him with patient and gentle eyes. He could reach out and touch him. He could place his palm on that smooth cheek. He could run his fingers through that short reddish bronze hair. He could—
No! Elijah stopped himself, guilty and ashamed of thinking of Daneel like that. He continued as mildly as he could, “If you don’t mind me asking, what sort of physical contact have you had so far? Did you like any of them in particular?”
Daneel had noticed these recurring conflicts in Elijah’s mind, often whenever they’d just shared a moment of closeness—or whenever Elijah desired closeness. He was not fully certain about the reason behind his partner’s resistance and shame (although he had formed a hypothesis) so he had been mindful not to overstep. He let Elijah initiate their contact and only ever touched his partner whenever Elijah was in a state where it was truly necessary.
He said, “You are always welcome to ask me anything, friend Elijah. I have shaken hands with a few people, yourself included. With you, you have grasped my hand, taken my arm or elbow, and embraced me once. We have also had several other instances of physical contact when you were in need of assistance.” Daneel paused and gave Elijah his small affectionate smile again. “Out of all contact I have experienced, I found our embrace to be the most preferable.”
Their recent embrace on board the previous Auroran ship was one of the rare times that Elijah had acted unbridledly affectionate with him, even if there was still some chagrin afterwards. It was one of the perfectly preserved memories of his partner that he had found himself revisiting over the past few days, purely for its texture.
Elijah’s heart melted. Normally he might’ve felt humiliated that nobody else had gone further than shaking hands with Daneel—not even his creators—but knowing that Daneel appreciated it simply eradicated all embarrassment. So what if he really was the only person incapable of treating Daneel as anything but a human with a slightly formal manner of speech? Daneel’s opinion was the only one that mattered.
He battled his impulse for a moment, then decided to chance it for Daneel’s benefit, asking, “In that case, would you like one now? A hug, I mean.”
“Oh, I would like that, yes,” Daneel said softly.
Elijah shuffled to the edge of his bench and awkwardly pulled Daneel close for a sitting hug. Daneel reciprocated lightly, as he had before, again seemingly content to stay there for as long as Elijah held him. Elijah waited a reasonable duration before forcing himself to let go. They were sitting closer together now, neither having retreated fully to their original positions. Their knees were nearly touching.
“Thank you, Elijah.”
Elijah paused for a long moment. He was nearing the end of his line of inquiry stemming from the original question, and so far he’d found nothing that falsified his hypothesis. Yet, he knew that the customs the Aurorans held would be programmed in Daneel.
When he finally spoke, he said as casually as he could, “Daneel, would you ever offer yourself to someone that you loved?”
“No!”
“Even if you were confident that they’d be receptive?”
“No!” (It was repeated in exactly the same tones.)
“Alright, but what if someone whom you loved and who loved you in return offered themselves to you—would you be forced to accept under the First Law?”
“Only if the threat of injury is sufficient—which seems unlikely in the scenario you suggest—and then I would not view it as being forced, because upholding the Laws is satisfying to me. But I understand your meaning,” Daneel said. “You mean to ask if I would feel willing to accept regardless of my programming, do you not? If so, I have had experiences that are aligned with your definition of love, so yes, personally I would gladly accept.”
Hope was rising palpably in Elijah’s chest. He realised with some irony that he had been in life-threatening situations, yet never felt as vulnerable as he did now. Being Outside in a thunderstorm suddenly seemed easier in comparison.
Trying his best to keep his voice normal, he continued, “Is there currently anyone you would gladly accept, then?”
Daneel hesitated, then said, “There is one person.”
For Daneel, this conversation was the first time that anyone had asked him anything about what he wanted. He anticipated the question that would inevitably follow, and actually felt apprehensive about answering it (in another first for him), since he was not sure how Elijah would react. It did not help that Elijah’s cerebric qualities, which had been shifting positively, began slipping into a conflicted churn immediately after he had spoken.
Elijah’s mind was racing wildly. Dare he hope? Could it be Dr. Fastolfe, who regarded Daneel as both his friend and a sort of first-born? (After all, Auroran customs held no qualms around intimacy with either of those relations.) But Fastolfe hadn’t even hugged Daneel, as Elijah had done. Nobody had!
He debated internally with himself. Why risk the pain of rejection, if the answer did not transpire to be the one he so desperately wanted to hear? But—what if it did? And if it did, what could he even do about it? He had three days on the ship, nothing more.
Still, if it were somebody else, he could at least encourage Daneel to try and find happiness with them, whoever they were. Suddenly, he was struck by the shocking realisation that Daneel’s happiness was more important to him than his own—especially since Daneel would never pursue it by his own volition. There was something so pure and guileless about Daneel that made Elijah feel immensely protective of him.
His mind made up, Elijah caved and steeled his nerves for the reply. “So who under the naked sun is the lucky man or woman, Daneel?”
It dawned on the robot that the human—the only human who loved him as an equal and treated him so—evidently did want the exact answer he was about to give.
“You, Elijah,” Daneel said softly.
Time seemed to halt. It was real. Incredibly, impossibly real.
For a moment, neither of them could move. Intense brown eyes fixed on gentle blue ones. Underneath the surface, a revolution was happening in both.
Every fugitive thought, every feeling that Elijah had buried in shame was now flooding him all at once in vindicated vengeance. All those times he thought himself a thoroughgoing fool for desiring to be close to his stolid partner, for dismissing any possibility that Daneel could feel the same for him. Daneel did feel the same! He’d been right all along.
Daneel perceived Elijah’s mental aura at once. In a mirror image of the human’s emotions, his own sensations surged. His uneasiness vanished, replaced with the familiar sense of lightness which now permeated his entire being. His thoughts flowed more smoothly than they’d ever had. A number of other changes cascaded rapidly through his systems. He wondered if this was how it felt to be in love. If so, he wanted to be in love with Elijah for as long as he could.
He gazed tenderly at Elijah with his grave smile.
That little smile of Daneel’s made Elijah smile too. He adored it so. Adored! It was exhilarating to allow himself to feel things like that.
Elijah drew a deep breath and held out his right palm. “I don’t know the Auroran way to say it, but I offer myself to you. Daneel Olivaw, will you accept me?”
Without hesitation, Daneel placed his hand in Elijah’s and replied firmly, “I do.” Decisions suddenly felt easier to him. “And do you accept me, Elijah Baley?”
Exhaling sharply, Elijah rose and pulled Daneel out of his seat to throw his arms around him. “Of course! Always.”
Daneel now embraced Elijah back just as tightly, delivering himself of one of his curiously human sighs—except that this time, it wasn’t out of confusion at illogical human behaviour, as it had been just the night before when Elijah solved the case. Quite the opposite, in fact.
Daneel had never felt more certain about anything so utterly human as the force of their love.
Elijah cupped Daneel’s face in his hands, his thumbs caressing Daneel’s smooth cheeks. “Can I kiss you?” he asked, quickly adding, “If you want?”
Daneel nodded.
He pressed a brief and chaste kiss to Daneel’s lips. They were soft.
Nervously, he asked, “How was that?”
“It was pleasant,” said Daneel mildly.
Taking that as encouragement to continue, he kissed Daneel again, more slowly and deliberately, entirely unsure of what to expect.
After a moment Daneel began to kiss back, following his lead perfectly naturally. Elijah thought happily: just like when we ran the Strips together in the City… The only notable difference was that Daneel didn’t need to breathe.
They continued to exchange soft kisses, each longer and less tentative than the last. It felt to Elijah like everything they’d left unsaid was being spoken in kisses. The tenderness was searing.
He breathed Daneel in, tasting him lightly. Daneel’s mouth parted for him. It was warm, and—unexpectedly—very wet. He was surprised at this because Daneel previously mentioned that he didn’t salivate, while on the topic of eating. Perhaps it could be summoned at will like Jander’s tumescence?
Elijah inhaled sharply, feeling himself rapidly kindling. “Daneel,” he murmured, pulling back to look into Daneel’s eyes.
“Yes?”
“Do you—is this alright? Does it feel good?”
Daneel nodded and said, “You must tell me if you are uncomfortable in any way.”
“Of course,” Elijah promised. “Same goes for you too,” he said, brushing a thumb across Daneel’s bottom lip.
“I will,” said Daneel.
Daneel was far from uncomfortable. Pleasant sensations were radiating through him. Obscure processes deep in his core were firing up. He had never experienced anything like it before.
He leaned in for another kiss and explored Elijah’s mouth thoroughly, drawing gasps of surprise and pleasure, along with a wave of libidinous brain activity.
Elijah’s fingers threaded through his hair as they deepened the kiss. All of this seemed to set Daneel’s positronic pathways alight with possibilities. New connections were forming spontaneously.
When Elijah finally had to pause to come up for air, Daneel bent to slide his arms under his partner’s armpit and behind the knees, briskly scooping him up sideways with minimum effort.
“Hey! What are you doing! Put me down!“ Elijah exclaimed indignantly, brow creasing while suppressing a smile as he hung on to Daneel.
“It is an old wedding custom of yours. Are you not aware?” Daneel asked smoothly, ignoring his protests.
Elijah burst out laughing. “I know that! But why—”
His laughter and question was smothered by yet another kiss while Daneel strode to the bed and deposited him. In a single fluid motion, Daneel’s tall and lithe form was instantly straddling him, palms at either side of his head. Clear blue eyes gazed down at him.
“I thought you might enjoy it,” said Daneel with a small smile.
A shiver of excitement ran down Elijah’s spine as he lay firmly pinned (Daneel was slightly heavier than a human of his slender build). This was the Daneel from the near-riot at the shoe store on Earth.
Cool. Calm. Assertive. Dominant.
Elijah grinned and slipped his hands under the silky Auroran fabric to hold Daneel’s bare waist. Incongruously, Daneel’s appearance was disheveled—bronze hair slightly ruffled and shirt askew. Elijah had never seen him like this (nobody had), and the effect was beyond intoxicating.
As Daneel watched Elijah grinning devilishly up at him, he did not think it unusual that all of these actions were coming easily to him. Certain things about humans were more predictable, which meant positronic harmony for him. What Daneel had not foreseen, however, was just how good it would feel to please Elijah in this way. Elijah’s responses were incredibly gratifying. Was this part of protecting his own existence? Was he then fulfilling both the First and Third Laws? It mattered not.
He kissed the corner of Elijah’s mouth, trailing methodically down from jaw to neck—a sensitive spot, according to his knowledge of human anatomy—where he planted a line of gentle open-mouthed kisses and licks along the curve of skin.
His partner whined softly with delight and wrapped his arms around him. Daneel felt Elijah’s mounting desire and, inexplicably, his own. Surely his own arose only from a drive to please?
He returned to Elijah’s mouth for another deep kiss while gathering him in and holding him very close, melding their bodies together. Through the thin layers of clothing he could feel his partner’s erection prodding into him and vice versa.
Elijah was promptly set ablaze so fiercely it almost hurt. “Daneel!” he cried and bucked involuntarily, seizing at Daneel who responded by holding him even closer.
He sought relief by grinding into Daneel, but it only served to make his need grow more urgent. He groaned. He wanted to feel every inch of Daneel. Grabbing clumsily at the seams of his partner’s clothes, he growled, “I want you. I want you.”
At that, Daneel quickly untangled himself from Elijah and got up from the bed. With a few touches his clothes fell away and he put them aside neatly. His bare bronzed skin with fine hair glowed warmly in the dim lighting and he was as unselfconsciously naked as he had been two and a half years ago in that Personal on the border of Spacetown.
Elijah had replayed that stolen glimpse in his mind more times than he cared to admit. The present-day view had one prominent difference: an erection that was beautifully sculpted like the rest of Daneel, and now Elijah could stare all he wanted.
Daneel was almost perfectly human in appearance, but the robot was definitely more of an idealized representation than faithful copy. A godly body—with those lean arms, broad shoulders and a well-knit torso tapering into slender hips that lead into long graceful legs; all sleek curves and firm, supple flesh. Jehoshaphat, thought Elijah, was this really happening?
He removed his shirt and discarded it carelessly on the floor. Daneel returned to the bed to kneel between his legs, deftly removing his trousers and underwear, freeing him.
Struck by another sudden thought, he caught Daneel’s hands. “Wait. You don’t have to do this for me,” he said hurriedly. “When I said I wanted you… that wasn’t an order.”
“I know,” said Daneel calmly. “Although it would please me all the more to fulfill such an order.”
“Right. But—I’d like to know if you can receive without giving at the same time. Pleasure, I mean. Do you think you might be able to?”
Daneel considered for a moment and said, “I think so.”
“Can we try it out with something that might be more pleasurable for you than it is for me?” Elijah asked. “So I can try to give without taking.”
“Of course.”
Elijah wrapped a hand around Daneel’s erection. (He suspected it was no more sensitive than any other part of Daneel’s body, but figured it was a reasonable place to start.) As he slowly moved his hand, he said gently, “Tell me how you feel, alright?”
Daneel found himself trying to adjust to the unusual situation of being served by a human and being the center of attention. It did not make him uneasy per se—since Elijah was more than willing—but it did seem to take some getting used to, even if the sensations were enjoyable.
Slightly apologetically, Daneel said, “I am not accustomed to focusing solely on my self-interest, but it is otherwise pleasant.”
“I know. That’s alright. I’ll keep going—just let me know if you want me to stop.”
Elijah hesitated, contemplating what he was about to do. He’d never done it before. He mused that at least he wouldn’t have to worry too much about doing a lousy job of it, and for that he was secretly grateful.
Then he bent to take Daneel in his mouth.
In a very human gesture, Daneel closed his eyes so he needed only process the remaining sensory input.
The first and only person ever to ask him how he felt was Elijah, and Daneel did not always know the human terms for describing his inner state. Now he struggled to find appropriate words for what he was experiencing.
“I… this is…”
Daneel’s breath hitched as he spoke. No words seemed enough, but he needed to answer his partner and let him know how he was making him feel. The undivided attention, the generosity and love exuding from Elijah’s mind and body—the effect on him was indescribable.
The sensations grew stronger. His mouth fell open soundlessly.
Of the tens of thousands of words programmed into him, only one came to mind.
“Elijah!”
“—Was that good?” asked Elijah hopefully, releasing him.
Daneel’s eyes snapped open. He blinked and nodded.
Somehow, Daneel knew he could only feel this way with Elijah. And, since he could not put those feelings into words, he needed to demonstrate them. He knew Elijah would understand.
Daneel brought his partner under his body again and kissed him with the fierce intensity of how he felt—this time with nothing separating them, bare bronze skin against pale. They could feel each other fully.
It ignited Elijah more painfully than before, leaving him gasping and kissing back desperately.
It occurred to Daneel that something Elijah had said earlier might be able to convey his feelings. He wrapped a hand behind Elijah’s neck and looked into his eyes calmly. “I want you.” His tone somehow carried a statement and a request both at once.
Elijah understood. He surrendered with an order, giving himself to Daneel in the strongest possible way. “Daneel. —I’m yours. Take me.”
With his invocation, all Three Laws were upon them.
Elijah’s mouth was immediately and fervently recaptured and his palms gripped against the bed by Daneel, rendering him helpless as his partner began to grind against him, mirroring him from before but at an excruciatingly steadier and unremitting pace.
He was on fire. All he could feel was Daneel.
He broke free from the kiss temporarily, when Daneel let him surface to breathe. In agony, he gasped, “Daneel… I’m… you’re going to make me…”
Daneel released his hands to embrace him, kissed him deeply again and kept going, unrelenting. Elijah struggled for air as he burned, his breaths laboring raggedly, staccato and shallow. He clutched Daneel, his fingertips curling into his flesh.
“Mine,” Daneel murmured as though he was completing both of Elijah’s sentences, drawing Elijah tighter possessively.
It forced Elijah over the edge. “Oh God—I’m—ahhh—” he cried in a nearly strangled voice as the inferno swept through him. He squeezed his eyes shut as a long inarticulate moan was torn from his throat. In the blinding heat he heard his name, followed by what sounded like a sharp exhale-inhale through the mouth from Daneel. He shuddered violently then sagged and went limp under Daneel, unable to move apart from panting.
Little by little, Elijah gathered some of his scattered wits. He saw that Daneel had his eyes closed with the subtlest furrowing of his brows, perfectly motionless in a portrait of concentration.
For a horrible instant Elijah was terrified that he had roblocked his partner, but then those beautiful blue eyes fluttered open and Daneel’s expression evened into his normal one of calm repose, except with a shadow of surprise. Daneel raised himself off Elijah on straightened arms.
Elijah asked, “Did you...?“
He glanced down at the fluid on his navel. It seemed rather more than usual. He frowned in confusion.
Daneel looked down too and said in equal puzzlement, “I think so.”
“Spontaneously? Not at will?” asked Elijah, propping himself up and peering more closely at his belly.
“That appears to be the case.”
“Jehoshaphat…” whispered Elijah.
Daneel made as though to get up, but Elijah stopped him and reached for his shirt from the floor. He used it to wipe them clean, then folded it and returned it to the floor. He was too spent now to fuss over matters of personal hygiene.
“Do you wish to shower?” Daneel asked.
“No, it’s fine, I’m too tired for that. Stay with me?”
“Of course.” Daneel reached for a contact to turn off the dim lights and reduce the field intensity that acted as pseudo-gravity, then lay back on the bed.
Elijah nestled comfortably into the crook of Daneel’s shoulder, finding him pleasantly warm and not excessively so.
Daneel started to say something but stopped.
“What is it?” asked Elijah.
“I am not sure of the appropriate honorific to use for you.”
Elijah chuckled. “Use anything you want, or nothing at all.”
“Partner?”
“Mmm. I like that. I’m used to it.”
“I like it, too. Partner Elijah, what will happen when we arrive on Earth?”
“Do you want to come with me?”
“Is that what you wish?”
“I wish for it wholeheartedly, Daneel, but honestly I’m not sure if it’s possible.” Elijah sighed heavily.
With some difficulty, Daneel said, “I… I know it might pose problems for you. It might be harmful to your family.”
“Jessie? We’ve been unofficially separated for a while now, but we’re still on good terms. It’s one of those things. I think she’s already seeing someone else.” Elijah shook his head. “I’m a little more worried about Ben. I don’t know what he’ll make of us—” he gestured uselessly in the dark, “because he doesn’t know you’re a robot, like Jessie does. He’ll probably think his old man’s lost his marbles. And maybe he’d be right…”
“What other issues would there be?”
“Well, you can pass for a human in person, but legally wouldn’t be. And there's also the question of my emigration. I might be able to go after all. The plan is to colonise the new worlds entirely without robotic help, so even if I could bring you to Earth, we’d have to be parted then. And I don’t know if I can bear that.”
Daneel said, “Then I would wish to go with you only if it were possible to avoid these issues. I do not wish to hurt anyone in the process, nor to interfere with your potential emigration.”
There was that curious helpless sound hovering within Daneel’s otherwise calm voice. Elijah had last heard it when they’d started on the case a few days ago, while they were discussing the nuances of language, and it pained him to hear it now.
Gently, he said, “Maybe I can think of a way, Daneel. I promise I’ll try to figure something out.“ He yawned.
“You are in need of rest, let us speak when you wake.”
They lay quietly in the dark.
Elijah laced their fingers together and held the back of Daneel’s hand to his lips. His breathing slowed. “I love you... so much…”
Almost too softly to be heard, Daneel replied, “I love you, too.”
Elijah wasn’t sure if he imagined it as he drifted off to sleep.
After that, the only sound for hours was his rhythmic breathing as he slept with Daneel by his side.
🎵 Ennio Morricone - Un Amico https://open.spotify.com/track/6c3d7ofF9UNFpVq6SxHwC1?si=306a9513f46340bd
🎵 Riz Ortolani - Cannibal Holocaust (Main Theme) https://open.spotify.com/track/3N9fFHXzJXzdmDzb4iYm8y?si=25d4c660400d4599
Original artwork
More artwork and progress updates on Tumblr:
Bonus, a piece not drawn by me that illustrates this scene well:
