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onewhoturnsA/N Oct 2018: Elsewhere: AO3, FFnet, and the preview on ko-fi for the next section. It seems that the “2″ section of the fae au is a bit more segmented than 1. But - of course - I’m a sucker for drawing out anything before a kiss. Speaking of kisses...
Story Title: Iron & Gold
Chapter Title: An Offer
Chapter Part: 4/4
Story Part: 8/?
Pairing: Emily/Outsider (emsider)
Word count: 1673
Rating: T
Summary: Ever since she was a child Emily had been cautioned: beware the fae. She’d heard the typical warnings – faerie rings, wishing wells, mysterious lights in the darkness. But they were just cautionary tales... [A Dishonored fae AU]
start here (prelude), previously (2-3), next part (3-1)
Emily didn’t notice it at first. She assumed the leaves that brushed her slippered feet were just more of the forest floor, overgrown with roots and weeds as it was. It was only when she tried to move toward him that she realized her feet were tangled in ivy. She blinked at them in confusion, and saw them continuing a slow weaving pattern, trapping her there. Startled, she looked to the faerie. “Did you-” She fell silent as he rested his finger on her lips. Not a single word came to her tongue as she watched in dawning awe at the subtle changes taking place.
The glamour - or at least some of it - seemed to melt away. There was no longer any doubt about the otherness of the man before her. One of the few things that didn’t change was his eyes. Gold and black, with thick long lashes that now brushed against skin that was deathly pale, a bluish gray cast to it all, like marble. His feathered cloak dissipated like smoke, the shadows that obscured his figure curled and writhed, and it almost seemed like the white of his chest dripped down over it instead of the darkness retreating. She followed the trickle of skin with her eyes until she caught the slight dip at his waist and quickly averted her gaze before it might go any lower, turning her head away.
Without the sight of him being an immediate distraction, she became more aware of the weaving plants. The ivy that twined around her ankles was too warm for the autumn night, the soft leaves tickling her skin even as she nervously shifted her weight from foot to foot, both hands now digging into the berries in her pockets. For all their thin delicate stems, she wasn’t entirely sure she’d be able to break free of the wrapping vines that still crept higher, spiraling around her calves.
Her tone was framed like a warning as she brought her gaze back to him. “This wasn’t part of the-”
She would’ve been irritated at being hushed - again - but she was too fascinated. The hand that covered her mouth was not a hand. Or-- it was… in a way. The limb was a matte sooty black all the way up to his elbow, darker ebony veins and vine-like shadows clearly visible on - under? - the skin of his forearm, itself ridged like bark and edged with thorns. Fingers seemed to have cracked and lengthened and sharp talon-like claws now brushed the side of her neck as his palm, soft as the finest ashes, rested against her lips. His skin smelled of charred wood and moss.
He moved a step closer and she realized he still wore shadow, hiding his body from his hips down, a slash of black dragged over his sternum like coal-covered fingers had scraped down his chest. Something tickled her elbows and she shifted uncomfortably, even as his hand turned, claws running lightly over her cheek and down her chin, parting her lips for the briefest moment before she tensed them closed again, unwilling to look away.
“Emily…”
Goosebumps broke out over her skin as he spoke her name. A name she’d never given him, a name she’d never even heard spoken in his presence -- a name that seemed so comfortable on his tongue.
The points of his claws traced teasingly over the sensitive skin of her neck and shoulders, making her shiver, as he murmured her name again, his eyes wandering over her face. “Sweet innocent Emily.” Echoes of wolves and rain and soft chiming notes wove through his voice, and she knew without her charms she would’ve been lost to enchantment long ago. “Darling naive Emily.”
Her eyes narrowed in annoyance even as she locked her knees to keep from falling as he leaned toward her, his breath making her skin tingle as his hand drew away. She watched his mouth - pale lips, black tongue, teeth slightly too sharp - as he whispered the words.
“Will you seal our contract?”
She’d already agreed to it. But still, she hesitated. It had felt so overwhelmingly in her favor a moment ago. A taste of magic, for a moment of lips on lips. But his words… He called her naive, and she was starting to doubt the word-crafting skills she’d been so sure of before. He knew something she did not.
A black brow raised to remind her of his question.
Before she could argue herself out of it, Emily closed the distance between them, pressing tight lips to his for the briefest moment before pulling away, hands tight fists in her pockets.
He didn’t move. Didn’t come closer, didn’t move away. His mouth curved into a sly smile. “That was not a kiss, Your Majesty.”
She glared. “Yes it was.”
He looked amused, and though he didn’t lift a finger it was as though she could feel his claws trailing down her cheek. “It was a peck, sweet Emily.” He liked saying her name too much. “You’ve pecked others. For this bargain,” he reminded her: “Your first-” the emphasis was just as important as it was on “-kiss.”
Her cheeks had flushed to match her lips, half regretting her decision and half unsure how exactly to go about kissing such a creature. But it was clear he wouldn’t do the deed for her.
His chin lifted, almost challenging her, mouth still within reach if she dared, and she wiggled her toes nervously, feeling the slightest strain of the thin vines as her muscles flexed beneath them.
She’d seen people kiss. She knew how it worked. ...At least… she thought she might…
Right. She could do this.
Soft mouth parted, she tentatively brought her face to his again, closing her eyes both to avoid his inhuman stare and because it felt appropriate. She breathed in even as her nose brushed against his, the slightest suction sealing their lips for a fraction of a second. She didn’t intend anything with her tongue - nothing at all - but she couldn’t help it when, in brushing against the seam of her own lips, the tip briefly whispered over his lips as well.
The kiss was slow - gentle - and oddly sincere.
He tasted like honey and ash. Like woodsmoke and nectar and lichen and bone: sweet and earthy and almost eerie. There was nothing light or subtle in it. His mouth was rich and dark and reminded her of the first time she’d had unwatered wine. The first time she’d tasted black tea and cinnamon.
He made no attempt to invade her mouth, though she was sure with the way he shifted his lips over hers that he sought to taste her as well.
She was tempted to keep kissing him. To wrap her arms around his neck and breathe in his breath. For a moment she loosened her fists, intending to do just that, but the feeling of the berries and salt brought her to her senses. That was the lure of the fae, wasn’t it? They trafficked in temptations. Still-- though she knew better, she lingered.
Emily’s glanced up in surprise as she felt his hands - more human than they’d seemed a moment ago - press gently on either side of her face, and she watched him warily is he pulled away from her lips. With no small amount of self-satisfaction a thumb brushed her temple as he leaned forward and-- She quickly closed her eyes as he pressed a soft kiss onto each eyelid. Another first. But when her eyes opened she realized the significance of the gesture.
She blinked in utter amazement, and somewhat in pain - he was glowing. So was most of the forest-- or at least little spots here and there. But in him was something breathtaking. It shifted and surged in golden light like chaos itself, wolf and deer and frog and swan and tree and stone, all things in flux. She held up a hand to shield her eyes from the sight. “What - how are you-”
A hand covered her eyes for a moment, and she felt a pinch, a tightness behind her ears, and when she looked again the effect had mostly faded, leaving just a halo of light around whatever the thing was that stood before her. Her mouth moved wordlessly, unsure what she could possibly say, completely flabbergasted. His lips were still in that reserved smile, something small and secret twisting them. Emily could hardly think. Everything seemed to have happened so fast. Finally she managed to speak, though her words were choked and breathless - dumbfounded.
“What are you?”
The words had barely left her mouth before his face was beside hers again, and she struggled to keep her eyes open at the brush of his nose against her cheek, his breath skittering down her neck like a creeping frost. It chilled her at the same time as warmth flooded her body, and as she lifted her hands reflexively they rested on bare skin. The texture was odd, like rock made flesh, and her fingers couldn’t help their curious brush against him.
Her mind went blank, completely forgetting whatever it was she’d asked, as his lips pressed softly to her cheekbone. For a brief moment she allowed herself to experience it all, eyes closing as she took a deep breath, taking in every scent, sound, and sensation. When his mouth moved first to her temple, then the spot just below her ear, she thought her knees might buckle. But she made no move to pull away, to push him away; no sound of protest passed her lips. And he made no attempt to touch her beyond where his mouth met her skin in the smallest - the lightest - of brushes. It was… oddly polite, she supposed.
Some small part of her wondered if - or perhaps hoped? - he might continue. But his chest drew away, then his lips, and when Emily opened her eyes he was gone and she was left alone, unbound, in a world full of magic.
