Chapter Text
Problematic.
Problem is I want your body like a fiend, like a bad habit
Bad habit's hard to break when I'm with you
Yeah I know I could do it on my own, but I want that real full moon black magic and it takes two.
Problematic.
Problem is when I'm with you I'm an addict.
I need some relief, my skin in your teeth
Can't see the forest through the trees
Got me down on my knees, darlin' please, oh
I lose control
When you're not next to me
I'm falling apart right in front of you, can't you see?
- Teddy Swims - I Lose Control
Lucanis sat on the cot in the Lighthouse's kitchen, sipping his fourth coffee of the day. Spite had been a major pain in the ass the last few days, and sleep had not been kind. When he slept, Spite took over. Twice, Taash had caught him wandering towards the eluvian in the main body of the Lighthouse. Twice Taash and Harding had talked him down. And once they'd had to call Rook to help. It was becoming tiresome, truly. The last thing he needed was to burden Rook with anymore than she was already dealing with.
.... Like his feelings for her. She didn't need to know that. Not when she had the weight of the world on her shoulders. There was no time for romance... was there? No, probably not. They were, after all, fighting literal ancient elven gods.
Dragging a hand through his dark hair, Lucanis sighed a heavy, weary sigh. His chest felt heavy, achy. His head felt full, and not just because Spite lurked around every corner. Keeping Rook at arms length was growing more and more difficult the longer he was around her. And that purposeful isolation was worse than being stuck in the Ossuary had been.
He'd grown used to being alone , having been burned one too many times in the past. Very few people had ever wanted to get involved with a crow. It wasn’t exactly in their nature to be faithful partners, after all. Sure, he lusted after many a person in his time, and yeah, a good number of those had ended up in his bed. But Rook... Rook was different. She had saved him. She had taken the time, the risk, to enter the Ossuary to free him from the torture he'd been under.
From the moment Lucanis has laid eyes on her, he'd known that this woman would likely be the death of him. Beautiful beyond measure and twice as powerful, Devi had been the subject of many a late night fantasy of his these past few months. Visions of her unearthly mismatched violet and green eyes clouded by lust, her face contorted in pleasure. Dreams of being surrounded by a curtain of her long dark hair as she straddled him, kissed him with her plump, soft lips. And Maker, how he wanted to touch, kiss and taste every inch of her fair, tattooed skin. More than once, he'd caught himself staring at the tattoo that sat below her collarbones, wondering what the rest of it looked like, where it disappeared between her breasts. And in those instances, Spite would cackle merrily in the back of his head, adding its own thoughts to the already incredibly impure ones that drifted through Lucanis' head.
But beauty aside, Rook was incredible. She was kind, caring. She'd taken the time to get to know him, joined him every time he decided to go to the markets in Treviso to pick up supplies for the Lighthouse. He watched her in the courtyard with Assan, playing with the baby griffin like she would a dog. He saw the way she went out of her way to help her companions - her friends - feel more at home, saw the way she did her best to take care of everyone else, above her own needs. Rook's compassion was not lost on him either, and the guilt she felt about letting Minrathous down plagued her every minute of every day. That much she had confessed to him in one of their post-midnight coffee conversations. Apparently, she didn't sleep much either, and his company was more than a little favorable in the late hours of the night when the rest of the Lighthouse slept.
He'd grown to look forward to her visits when she was home. His training had always allowed him to identify his companions by their footsteps, and Rook's were his favorite to hear crossing the dining room. And before Lucanis really realized it his feelings for Rook extended beyond blatant sexual desire. He actually cared for her. And what that meant, what that would look like, well, he didn't know. So he did what he could to keep his distance. If she didn't fall for him, it would only be easier to get over his little crush, and everyone could move on with their lives... Right?
So far, that plan had not been going very well for him. It put his back up when he'd hear her flirt with the others, even in a completely un-serious manner. It irked him when Teia or Illario would make a pass at Rook when they were in his city together. But Gods, when those stunning eyes would look at him that way? It was all he could do to contain himself - and Spite.
He set his empty cup down on the little table and folded his arms over his chest, diving deeper into thought. There were things he needed to do, debts he needed to collect, before he could even think of romance. Zara, for one. That bitch needed to pay for what she'd done to him, for sticking him with Spite. Then he needed to find a way to rid himself of the demon, that didn't involve the removal of his head from his shoulders. There were ways, so Rook said. But it was not a task that needed to be done immediately. It could wait, he could manage.
Then there was the matter of Catarina. The Crow’s were without their First Tallon, and Viago feared a mutiny was possible if a new one was not soon named, and Catarina’s disappearance was left a mystery. Part of Lucanis felt that his grandmother was still alive somewhere. The old broad wasn’t easy to take down. There was a very good reason she was First Tallon after all. But where did he start? Teia and Viago were looking for leads, he knew, but that had so far been less than fruitful.
Thoughts ran rampant in his head as he sat there, pondering what needed doing, how they were going to end the elven Gods. The first attempt at Ghilan'nain had gone poorly, and he still blamed himself heavily for their failure. No matter how many times the others told him that it was not his fault, Lucanis felt otherwise. He’d had the shot. He’d taken it… and missed. What sort of Antivan Crow fucking missed a shot like that!? Me, apparently , he thought miserably.
From there, his thoughts began to spiral even deeper. Introspection into his past, dwelling on his time in the Ossuary, all the negative things that had occurred in the last little while. And the more he spiraled, the more exhausting it became. The more exhausted he grew, the heavier his eyes became. And soon enough, even the copious amount of caffeine in his blood couldn’t keep him awake. Then again, it had been nearly three days since he had let himself sleep for more then ten minutes at a time. So it was no wonder that his body had eventually given out when it did.
And when it did, Spite took his chance.
Time always passed differently when Spite took over. Minutes felt like hours, and hours felt like days. Lucanis was keenly aware that his body moved, but not how. He could tell that Spite spoke with his mouth, used his voice, but he couldn’t recall what the demon said, or to whom he said it. The others had been good enough - so far - about telling him what had happened while he was out, though how much they neglected to tell him was something he wondered about.
This time, he could tell Spite was agitated even more than normal. He could feel the discontent, the anger. And it took far more effort than ever before to shove the demon back into the little cage that Lucanis kept it in. When he finally snapped back into his own body, he was standing in the pantry, confused and far more disoriented than he cared to admit.
Deep brown eyes blinked several times as his vision cleared, coming to focus on the beautiful, concerned face of the object of his desires. "Rook?"
Rook watched him for a moment, head tipping to one side. "You were sleepwalking,"
Lucanis huffed, looking away in shame. " Spite was sleepwalking," he corrected flatly.
"He didn't go anywhere, nothing happened," she assured him. There was concern in her vibrant, mismatched eyes, worry even. But no fear. Never fear.
Heart dropping ever so slightly, he frowned. "I didn't want you to see that... again,"
Rook took a step closer, folding her arms as she leaned against the stonewall of the pantry. Her pretty face relaxed as she gave him a gentle, almost flirtatious smile. "Nothing I'm seeing makes me want to look away," she said in that easy way of hers.
It was the way their conversations had been going from the moment he'd laid eyes on her. The banter, the flirting, the innuendo. But then... she had the same way with Davrin and Neve. Lucanis had passed her flirting off as just the way she is, though deep down he wished it was more. He wished she meant it.
Lucanis glanced away, heart aching. "How do you always do that?"
"Do what?" She asked, taking another step closer.
"Break apart my perfectly gathered clouds of doom," he replied, sarcasm heavy in his tone. He watched the elven woman smirk, and felt the familiar tug deep in his gut. The need. The want. "You deserve better than to deal with my mess,"
Rook let their eyes meet, her smirk turning into a more sincere smile. "You're more than what you're going through. And you wear it well," Rook held his gaze, her eyes burning into his.
There was something in that gaze that gave Lucanis pause. Something that seemed... genuine. Was that it? Was she as interested in him, as he was her? Fuck it , Lucanis thought, crossing the room towards her. There's only one way to find out .
He braced one hand against the wall above her head, coming close. Rook didn't move, didn't back away. "This isn't a good idea," he warned, looking down at her through half-lidded eyes.
It was clear from the way she held his stare, from the way she lifted a hand and rested the tips of her fingers on his chest, that he'd not been imagining the reciprocation in desire he’d sensed. His heart seemed to skip half a dozen beats as she tipped her chin ever so slightly to better meet his stare. "Sometimes a bad idea is better," she countered.
Lucanis moved closer, almost close enough for their bodies to touch. Close enough that he could feel her warmth. And still, Rook - Devi , he reminded himself - didn't back down. "You like to walk a little too close to the edge,"
That flirty smile returned, Devi's eyes dropping to a half lidded state. There was a sultry nature to that gaze, one Lucanis had not seen from her before. But it got him a little hot under the collar, especially when she toyed with the lapel of his waistcoat. "So do you," she replied, her tone dripping with invitation.
"At least I know I'm doing it," he taunted.
Kiss her! You fool!! Spite raged inside his mind. Rook. Wants. You!! And you. Want. Her!!
Ignoring the pull he felt was almost impossible, and with Spite goading him, Lucanis found it all too easy to lean in. And to his surprise - and pleasure - Devi leaned into him as well. He watched her eyes flutter closed, felt her hand press flat to his chest. They came close, so much so that he felt her wavering breath fan across his lips.
I can't , he thought, as he hesitated. Lucanis pulled back, pained that his fear of hurting her refused to let him have this. "I... need to clear my head," he said as he backed away.
There was no denying the hurt that filtered across Devi's face, and that only made Lucanis' heart ache worse than before. His hand pressed to his own chest as he took a step back, as if he could stop the pain by rubbing it.
"I-I..." Devi stammered, stepping back too. Tears welled up in her eyes, making the green and violet painfully vibrant in the candlelit room. "I'm sorry... I'll go,"
IDIOT!! Spite raged, taking control again. Spite stopped them, rooting Lucanis' feet in place. Do not. Make. Rook. CRY! TAKE her. Make. Her. YOURS! OURS!! As the demon spoke the last word inside Lucanis' head, it released its hold on his body and mind again.
"Devi wait," Lucanis said. She'd reached the door by the time he'd come back to himself, her hand on the knob. The woman looked back to him again, tears still glistening in her eyes. Three steps was all it took to reach her, and a split second more to reach out to cup her cheek. He tipped her chin upwards as his other hand reached for her waist, gently pulling her into him.
Her breath caught as she blinked up at him, those tears running down the corners of her wide, almond shaped eyes. His thumb softly brushed it away, as he leaned down and pressed his lips to hers. Devi melted into his arms, her hands coming up to rest on his chest as she returned his kiss. And Maker above, Lucanis was sure he saw stars behind his closed eyes. Her lips were so soft, her slender form fitting nearly too perfectly into his arms.
His hand slid into her long, thick, dark hair, cradled the back of her head. Hers moved up his chest, one resting on the side of his neck, the other working its way into his hair. Lucanis broke the kiss, only to join their lips once again in a deeper one, one that Devi wasted no time in returning. Lucanis gave a quiet little whimper as he felt her tongue press against his lips, parting them eagerly to meet hers with his own. The hand at her waist moved down to her hip, around to the small of her back, and he pulled her flush against his chest.
Devi was the first to break the kiss, breathing heavily as she looked up at him. "You... called me by my name," she said, her voice hardly above a whisper. Her cheeks were flushed, and Lucanis could feel her heart pounding against his, the rhythms almost in perfect sync.
"I did," Lucanis purred. He moved back into the room, away from the door, and backed her up against the wall once again. The little gasp that left her lips then was enough to make him shove aside every thought that told him this was a bad idea, and arousal flooded his every nerve. He leaned down, softly pressing his lips to her jaw, just in front of her ear before he spoke. "But I'll have you moaning mine,"
Rook's hands fisted in the sides of his waistcoat as she tugged him closer to her. His own slid down the sinful curve of her backside as he bent down, easily lifting her feet from the floor and wrapping her legs around his hips. Lips met in a rough, filthy kiss that was a mix of parted lips and tongues, each of them losing themselves in the other.
It was as if the carefully constructed dam that had restrained Lucanis from acting on his desire for Devi had crumbled. There was no stopping himself now, even if he knew this was a terrible idea. Everything about her was intoxicating; the scent of her hair, the taste of her lips, the feel of her body against his. Each little sound that left her, every little movement she made, all of it sent ripple after ripple of arousal through Lucanis’ gut, straight to his crotch. And it took embarrassingly little time before his cock stood at full attention in his trousers, straining mercilessly at its confines.
Delicate fingers began to unbutton his waistcoat, shoving it from his shoulders. His own moved up her waist to cup her breast through the silky blue blouse she wore. Devi hissed against his lips, shivering at his touch. His shirt was the next to go, Devi hastily unbuttoning it and pulling it from where he'd tucked it into his pants, before she tossed it to the floor, too.
From then it was only a matter of minutes before her shirt and breast band were tossed aside, and his mouth assaulted her neck and shoulders with a hundred kisses and nips. He could feel her hands exploring his body, her nails biting into his shoulders as he sucked little love bites at her collarbones. And there was no fighting the way he rocked his hips up into hers. Gods, he wanted so badly to taste her, to feel her.
Rook let loose a quiet moan, her lips close to his ear as he buried his face in her neck, the sound of it going straight to his cock. "Lucanis ," she breathed, her thighs tightening around his waist. "Don't stop... please … Gods please … I need you,"
Who the hell was he to ignore that sort of plea.
One hand reached between them and hastily began unlacing her trousers as she toed off her boots. Once loosened, he slid his hand inside, beneath her smallclothes. Fingers easily slid between her folds, his whole body shuddering with need, feeling the heat and wetness there as he found just the right spot. Devi arched her hips into his touch as best she could while he kept her pinned to the wall, sighing into the room as her head flopped back against the wall. "That's it, beautiful," Lucanis purred in her ear, stroking his middle and ring finger along her clit. "Let me hear you,"
Watching Rook in the throes of pleasure was something that Lucanis had only so far dreamed of, never before thinking that it would become a reality. But here he was, with the most beautiful woman in all of Thedas pinned to a wall, moaning because of the pleasure he provided. He grinned inwardly at the notion as he leaned into her neck, and let his teeth graze along the soft skin there. Hands scrambled along his shoulders, nails bit into his skin, drawing a quiet hiss from him as she clawed at him.
Rook reached between them then, quickly undoing his pants and shoving at them, pushing them lower around his hips. " Please ..." she whispered, lifting his head from her neck to kiss him again. The kiss broke for a moment, her eyes boring into his as she spoke again. "Don't make me wait anymore,"
Lucanis froze, breathing hard and heavy as he looked her dead in the eyes, scanning, searching for any hint of insincerity. But the only thing he was met with was pure lust. He removed his hand from her trousers and set her feet on the floor, eyes still locked on hers. Without asking her to, Devi shimmied out of her trousers, dropping them to the floor and slid her feet free. She slid her hands around his hips then, pushing his pants down over the muscular swell of his backside, and freeing his hard, aching cock in the process.
Devi blinked up at him while he kicked them the rest of the way off, her cheeks growing a deeper pink with each second. Fully nude, Lucanis stepped back into her, their arms automatically finding their way around each other's bodies.
Lips met in a slow, sultry kiss as her hands found his hair again, and Lucanis wasted little time in hoisting her back into his arms. Her legs wrapped around his hips once again, this time pressing his cock between her folds. He gripped the backs of her thighs, pushing her against the wall with the weight of his body, and rocked against her tentatively. He could feel the slick wetness of her body coating him as he teased them both, and wanted nothing more than to sink himself deep inside. A low hum left the back of his throat as he broke their kiss, burying his face in the side of her neck instead.
Devi sighed, her hips rolling down against his with each upward rock. She was eager, he could tell. It had been quite some time since he’d felt a woman this wet and ready after so little foreplay, but Lucanis wasn’t about to complain. He too had been a little too eager to get Devi out of her clothes. And it was clear to see that she was growing more and more impatient, trying to tip herself just the right way to get him to slide inside of her instead of against.
Grabbing her hips to hold her still, Lucanis paused. He made sure their eyes locked, and reached between their bodies to take himself in hand. "Are you sure?" Lucanis asked, as he pressed the head of his cock against her opening. Even then, he could feel her walls fluttering, urging him inside.
" Yes ," she breathed. " Please ,"
Hearing that airy, moaned plea did him in. Lucanis gripped her tighter, and arched his hips upwards, sinking his cock into that delicious wet heat. Devi loosed a broken moan, one hand fisting in his hair, the other gripping his shoulder as he pushed deeper. Almost instantly, Lucanis knew that this was a bad idea, that this was something he could find himself getting addicted to very quickly. Everything about Devi felt too good; her silken skin against his, the swell of her full breasts pressing into his chest, the heat of her body enveloping his cock. But still, he did it anyway. He gave in to the temptation that had been taunting him the minute he'd set foot in the godsdamned Lighthouse.
Good! Spite snapped in his head. Lucanis could see the slightly warped image of himself that Spite liked to take on grinning at him in that feral way. Now please her.
That was something Lucanis could do. While relationships had been few and far between in his life, Lucanis was no stranger to sex. None of the Crows were. If that was the easiest way to get information out of a target, then so be it. If that was the most efficient way to lure a contract away from a party, so be it. He'd learned from likely too young an age how to please a partner - man, woman or otherwise. And while he may not have known many other things in that moment, Lucanis knew he could please Rook.
Seated deeply inside of her, Lucanis paused, chest heaving as he fought to keep control of himself. Devi had her head back against the wall, one hand reached out above her searching for something to grab. Lucanis slid a hand up her waist, followed the line of her arm, and grabbed her wrist, pinning it in place. The woman looked at him, eyes hazy in her pleasure as she grinned wickedly. It was a look Lucanis returned as he arched his hips back and thrust into her again, none too gently.
The moan she gave was likely too loud for the time of day, but he didn't care. " Yes !" she panted, the hand at his shoulder gripping hard enough that Lucanis was sure she drew blood. " Don't stop ,"
"I didn't plan on it," he replied, voice low and rough in pleasure. He arched back again, slamming forward into her, reveling in the way her pussy squeezed around him.
The pace he set then was quick and rough, and from the look of elation that passed across Rook's face as she clung tight to his back, that was exactly how she'd wanted it. Her painted lips parted in a pleasured smile as her neck arched, and the hand he'd pinned to the wall flexed. Mana seemed to crackle around them, rolling off Devi in waves, filling the room with an almost electric tingle that tickled Lucanis's spine.
And the longer it went on, the deeper Lucanis fell. What had been simple infatuation turned Lust, slowly grew deeper. The ache in his heart grew, and the harder it pounded against his ribs, the more convinced he grew that it would burst through his chest and into Devi's open palm. He wouldn't call what he felt by what it truly was. No, that word was too much. Too much when he wasn't sure if this was an itch she needed scratched, or if there was more to it.
Lucanis hooked his arm under her knee, planting his palm against the wall for stability as he picked his pace up. He could feel her tightening around him, and heard the way Devi’s moans caught in her throat. Funny , he thought while he mouthed along the side of her neck. She doesn't seem too concerned with who hears what . Not that he minded. Hearing her voice her pleasure only stroked his ego that much more.
Between the way her body felt around him, and the fact that it had been well over a year since he'd had the pleasure of another body, it didn't take long before Lucanis found himself hovering on the edge of release. NO ! Spite snapped, tugging on the reins of control, but not fully taking over. You wait! Rook. First!
Were he alone in that moment, he would have argued with the demon, telling it that obviously Devi would orgasm - if he was quick about it, multiple times - before he ever thought about finishing. He was a gentleman, after all.
Lucanis released the hand that pinned Devi's to the wall and slid it down her arm, her shoulder. He cupped a breast in his palm, squeezed and toyed with it, pinched and tugged at her perky nipple. Rook gasped, clawing at the wall over her head as Lucanis leaned down and nipped at it with his teeth, sucking it between his lips. His hand moved down her waist, grabbed the back of her other thigh and pushed her legs further apart to give himself more room to move. His thrust became slower, more drawn out, but no less forceful when he pushed back inside. He wanted her to feel every inch of his cock slide along her inner walls, wanted to make sure she remembered who it was making her moan so loudly.
He watched as her head fell back, eyes closed and slack lips curved up into an elated smile. Devi looked blissful like that, lost in pleasure. Part of Lucanis almost wished he had taken his time, the way he had always wanted to with her. Another time , he thought. Assuming there is another. Both of her hands lifted then, cupped his cheeks and tipped his face up to hers. Lips met in a breathless kiss, the pair of them moaning and sighing into one another mouths between kisses.
It was then that he made the slightest adjustment to his stance, to better hold Rook in place. But that subtle shift caused Rook to break the kiss, her hands gripping his biceps so hard he knew he'd have bruises. " Fuck!! Right there !" She panted. Her brows pinched, face contorting in pleasure. Lucanis could feel the quiver in her muscles, feel the way she clenched and locked down around his cock. " Yes... keep going... Gods I'm so close... "
"That's it, darling," he purred, licking a stripe up the front of her neck. "Come for me,"
And she broke.
Gods, was she ever lovely like that. Her head tossed back, hair spilling over her shoulders and sticking to sweat-dampened skin. Multicolored eyes were open wide, gazing up at the ceiling as she panted and whimpered through her orgasm, body shaking in his arms. And perhaps the most beautiful thing in that moment was the way that the only words on her lips was his name.
Nails bit into his shoulders, his chest, leaving bright red gouges in his skin, and still, Lucanis didn't let up, didn't give in. As difficult as it was to not spill himself into her, Lucanis held back.
Rook gritted her teeth, whimpering against the onslaught of pleasure as Lucanis fucked up into her. His own jaw was clenched tightly, sweat running between his shoulder blades. It glistened on Devi's skin, making the tattoos inked into it shimmer in the candlelight.
"Please..." she panted, still shaking. Pleasured tears dripped down the sides of her face, and he knew she was hitting overstimulation. Lucanis leaned into her, pressed his lips to hers again, drinking down her moans and sighs. "Keep going... don't stop... come for me..."
He hummed against her lips, slipping one hand between her thighs again. Fingers found just the right place, tracing quick little circles around her clit as he fucked her quicker again. “One more, beautiful,” Lucanis urged, feeling her squeeze his cock again. Devi whimpered, mouth falling open as both hands reached over her head, clawing at the wall. “Can you do that for me?”
“ YES !” Rook cried, pushing her hips against his to force him deeper inside. Whatever place within her walls he hit tipped her over the edge, and orgasm crashed over her once again. And it was as her body contracted and fluttered around his cock that Lucanis lost it. The pleasure was damn near blinding as he came with a deep growl, thrusting harder still as he spilled wave after wave inside of her, both hands clenching to her thighs to leave bruises of his own on her fair skin.
Lucanis’ knees gave out from under him, and the pair sank to the floor - still joined - as Devi slumped against his chest, her arms draped around his neck and shoulders. She sat straddling his lap, chest heaving with the effort it took to draw in air. Somewhere in the back of his mind, Lucanis made a note that he’d never seen Rook so winded before, not even after a battle. Something that fueled his ego even more. His own arms wrapped around her slender frame, cradling her close to his chest as he let the pair of them come down from what other plane of existence that sort of release had sent them.
His head tipped back as they sat there, tangled in one another, panting and gasping for breath. Bleary brown eyes gazed blankly at the ceiling above them. Maker please, he thought as he rested a hand on the back of Devi’s head while she buried her face in his neck. Please let this be real. Please do not take her from me.
Shit, he was in way over his head.
Time seemed to slow as they found their way back into their bodies, but all too soon, Devi shifted to remove his softening cock from her body, and lifted her head again. A gentle hand smoothed the hair from his face, pushed it from his eyes. She gave a smile so delicate, so soft and peaceful that Lucanis could have cried, and he leaned into her palm as she cupped his cheek. There was something in her eyes, words lurking in her mind that she wanted to speak but couldn’t.
He lifted a hand of his own, let the backs of his fingers trail down her cheek. “What is it?” he asked, soft and quiet in the shocking stillness of the moment.
Devi seemed to catch herself then, and sat back ever so slightly, but enough that she pulled away from his touch. She blinked as if a spell had broken, and Lucanis knew he’d lost her. Whatever had been hovering on her tongue had fled, and whatever moment had been between them ended. That alone was enough to break his heart. But feeling her push from his arms to get to her feet did the trick. “I should go,” she said, quickly gathering her clothing.
Lucanis closed his eyes, feeling the loss of her body in his arms like a physical blow. “Perhaps you should,” he replied.
He didn’t look at her again as they both dressed in silence. He didn’t turn to watch as she left the room. And Lucanis refused to let the tears in his eyes fall as he clenched his fists at his sides.
Chase her!! Snapped the demon. Confess!
Why he took the advice of a literal demon, Lucanis never understood, but he turned and padded barefoot and bare chested towards the door of his pantry room, and threw it open. The dining hall door was swinging shut as he stepped out of the room, looking around in hopes that Rook was still there.
“Damn,” said the usually flat voice of the dragon hunter, Taash. Beside them sat a red-faced Bellara, and Neve, who's neatly shaped brow was arched ever so slightly. Taash laid a card on the table amid the game of Wicked Grace the three were playing, looking as bored as ever. “Lace owes me ten gold,”
Lucanis’ head snapped towards them, a murderous look in his eyes. “How long have you three been sitting there?”
The Qunari smirked. “Long enough,” Lucanis felt his cheeks flare with heat, and stubbornly looked away. “Sounds like you two had a good time,”
“Right up until she ran,” he muttered, dragging a hand through his hair. “Did she…?”
“Say anything?” Neve finished, while swapping a card in her hand with one in the discarded pile. “No. Just headed out,”
Lucanis nodded and sighed, both hands resting on his hips. “I see,”
He felt the way Taash watched him, the way they studied him with all the intensity of someone who trained for years to read the most subtle body language of beasts far more dangerous than him. “You got it bad for her, don’t ya?” they asked, leaning back in their seat at the kitchen table.
“You could say that,” Lucanis replied bluntly.
Bellara finally glanced over at him, her cheeks still red. “Thought about maybe just telling her?” she asked, laying her cards down on the table. The other two groaned and tossed a couple of coins her way.
Lucanis rolled his eyes and scoffed. “Every day since she saved my life,” he answered.
Neve, who had been cold towards him up until recently, fixed him with a sympathetic look and leaned against the table on her forearms. “Lucanis, you can't hide from your feelings forever,” she said. “It's a terrifying thing, to admit the way you feel. But if you try and bury it, it isn't going to end well for either of you,”
Bellara nodded in agreement. “I'm probably not supposed to tell you this,” she said. Eyes darted from Taash to Neve, both nodded. “But Rook… she's… well, put it this way, you aren't alone and holding back the way you have been is only hurting you both,”
Lucanis blinked, somewhat taken aback by the revelation. “She… feels the same?”
Taash scoffed. “Hasn't said as much to anyone, but if you were half as good at reading people as we think you are, you'd know by now that she's fuckin crazy about you,” They scooped up the cards and began shuffling the deck. “Go put a shirt on and sit down, I'll deal you in,”
Neve gave a soft smile in his direction and nodded. “If anything, we can give you some advice,”
“Not that he needs it,” Taash teased. “Pretty sure Emmerich was able to hear her screaming,” Lucanis flushed scarlet, as did Bellara, who giggled and smacked Taash in the well-muscled arm. “What!?! Am I wrong!?”
“ Definitely not,” Neve chided, smirking.