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maculategiraffeOkay, so that last bit should have carried a warning; sorry if I put anyone in a diabetic coma. Y'all had to know eventually that I have a Hostess cupcake where my heart should be. Moar angst to come. I swear. *shifty*
This part is eensy; the whole thing was just a little too long to post as one chapter.
Part Fourteen (A)
At breakfast the next morning neither Holden nor Bran appeared. Jesse braced himself for questioning and speculation from the others, but no one said anything. If Alix noticed her husband's absence, she gave no sign; she and Greta chatted easily about Valor for most of the meal. Jer was quiet and preoccupied, and Yves seemed more than usually physically attentive to him, touching his arm or his back or even leaning across to kiss his cheek at intervals during the meal, but aside from that, Jesse saw no difference in anyone's normal behavior.
It was well past noon, and Jesse had just gotten desperate enough for distraction to decide to check out the library, when he heard someone running down the stairs. As he hurried into the foyer, Bran pelted down the stairs and slammed without pausing into Jesse, shoving him up against the wall and attacking him with a ferocious open-mouthed kiss on his lips. Winded, Jesse struggled half-heartedly, Bran's fingers digging bruisingly into his shoulders as his tongue plunged halfway down Jesse's throat. Bran kissed him and kissed him, pulling back from his mouth only to begin biting and licking at his face like a psychotic puppy.
"So," Jesse managed finally as Bran sucked his eyelids. "Tell me again about how he's just very kind to everyone."
Bran laughed so hard he fell against Jesse.
"He fucking loves me," he said in Jesse's ear, and then stuck his tongue into it before adding, "and you fucking got him to say it."
"Yeah, well, hey!" Jesse said, as Bran dragged him down onto the floor and straddled his chest, trying to kiss him and talk at the same time.
"Sif's golden, Jess, what the fuck did you say to him? I thought it was just the longest most sadistic dream ever, I finally just begged him to wake me up, I couldn't stand it any more, and he– um– managed to convince me I was awake–"
"And he said I got him to say it?" Jesse asked, rather smugly.
"Well, I asked him why now, I mean, why now, and also why never before for the past two damn years--"
"And what did he say?"
Bran sat back on Jesse' s stomach, grinning. "Well, before he could really say anything he had to wrestle me onto the floor and pin my arms behind my back. I was a little... agitated."
Jesse cracked up. "So once he had you down, then what did he say?"
Bran started to answer, then grinned, laughed, tried to stop laughing, failed, and finally collapsed face down on top of Jesse, shaking both their bodies with laughter.
"You're hysterical," said Jesse, rolling Bran off him onto the floor and sitting up while Bran lay on the floor, kicking his feet. "Go on, tell me."
"He said," Bran gasped finally, "that, he said you were way too damn obnoxious to be merely human, so you had to be some kind of divine messenger, and he figured he'd better do what you said quick so you'd go ahead and disappear."
Jesse squinted, but Bran's laughter was so infectious that he ended up grinning.
"He was kidding," Bran managed, sobering enough to sit up, "but he said-- that you were a lot like him."
"He said that to me too," said Jesse. "Arrogant bastard."
Bran smirked. "And he said you told him a lot about himself."
"Damn right I did," said Jesse belligerently.
"Yeah. He said you thought you were so fucking smart and you knew so much about everybody else and you didn't know shit about yourself, and he realized maybe he didn't either. Know shit about himself."
Jesse shook his head, not sure whether to be offended or pleased. "What else did he say about me?"
"That he found you disturbingly attractive," said Bran, with a sideways grin, "and he wondered if that meant he was a narcissist. But then he said he usually ended up wanting to fuck anyone I was obviously attracted to anyway, and it was probably a competitive thing, and by the way if I didn't stop making cow eyes at Lisa Kareyeva he'd sell me to her, love me or not." Bran thought for a moment as Jesse tried not to cackle. "Oh, he said wasn't I in love with you because you were so much like him except younger and prettier and less overcommitted, and then I hit him and he tackled me and we had sex again."
"I guess that was a no," said Jesse dryly.
Bran laughed again. "Sorry, Jess." He climbed half into Jesse's lap, locked his arms around Jesse's neck, and kissed him again, hard.
"Where is he now?" Jesse asked, gasping for breath, when Bran finally broke the kiss.
"Asleep. I wore him out," said Bran, not without satisfaction.
"You didn't want to sit and gaze adoringly at him while he slept?" Jesse teased.
"No, I wanted to come find you and express my eternal gratitude to you for finally getting him to spit it the fuck out," said Bran, and crushed his lips against Jesse's again as Alix came out into the foyer. Jesse met her eyes past Bran's head.
"Bran," she said gently, and Bran pulled away and looked up at her, a shadow crossing his face for the first time. "Where is he?"
"In your bed, mistress," said Bran nervously. "Asleep."
"Come here," she said softly, and Bran scrambled to his feet and approached her tentatively, standing before her with his gaze respectfully lowered.
"You don't have to look so guilty," she said, reaching up to touch Bran's cheek. "It's just that I deserve a kiss, too."
Bran looked into his mistress' clear, untroubled green eyes for several seconds before leaning down to kiss her gently on the lips. She kissed back softly. When she pulled away, Bran sank to his knees and put his arms around her waist, burying his face against her stomach. She stroked his hair, looking down at him fondly.
"One thing you can say for my husband," she said to Jesse, "he's always had good taste in men."
Part Fifteen
This part is eensy; the whole thing was just a little too long to post as one chapter.
Part Fourteen (A)
At breakfast the next morning neither Holden nor Bran appeared. Jesse braced himself for questioning and speculation from the others, but no one said anything. If Alix noticed her husband's absence, she gave no sign; she and Greta chatted easily about Valor for most of the meal. Jer was quiet and preoccupied, and Yves seemed more than usually physically attentive to him, touching his arm or his back or even leaning across to kiss his cheek at intervals during the meal, but aside from that, Jesse saw no difference in anyone's normal behavior.
It was well past noon, and Jesse had just gotten desperate enough for distraction to decide to check out the library, when he heard someone running down the stairs. As he hurried into the foyer, Bran pelted down the stairs and slammed without pausing into Jesse, shoving him up against the wall and attacking him with a ferocious open-mouthed kiss on his lips. Winded, Jesse struggled half-heartedly, Bran's fingers digging bruisingly into his shoulders as his tongue plunged halfway down Jesse's throat. Bran kissed him and kissed him, pulling back from his mouth only to begin biting and licking at his face like a psychotic puppy.
"So," Jesse managed finally as Bran sucked his eyelids. "Tell me again about how he's just very kind to everyone."
Bran laughed so hard he fell against Jesse.
"He fucking loves me," he said in Jesse's ear, and then stuck his tongue into it before adding, "and you fucking got him to say it."
"Yeah, well, hey!" Jesse said, as Bran dragged him down onto the floor and straddled his chest, trying to kiss him and talk at the same time.
"Sif's golden, Jess, what the fuck did you say to him? I thought it was just the longest most sadistic dream ever, I finally just begged him to wake me up, I couldn't stand it any more, and he– um– managed to convince me I was awake–"
"And he said I got him to say it?" Jesse asked, rather smugly.
"Well, I asked him why now, I mean, why now, and also why never before for the past two damn years--"
"And what did he say?"
Bran sat back on Jesse' s stomach, grinning. "Well, before he could really say anything he had to wrestle me onto the floor and pin my arms behind my back. I was a little... agitated."
Jesse cracked up. "So once he had you down, then what did he say?"
Bran started to answer, then grinned, laughed, tried to stop laughing, failed, and finally collapsed face down on top of Jesse, shaking both their bodies with laughter.
"You're hysterical," said Jesse, rolling Bran off him onto the floor and sitting up while Bran lay on the floor, kicking his feet. "Go on, tell me."
"He said," Bran gasped finally, "that, he said you were way too damn obnoxious to be merely human, so you had to be some kind of divine messenger, and he figured he'd better do what you said quick so you'd go ahead and disappear."
Jesse squinted, but Bran's laughter was so infectious that he ended up grinning.
"He was kidding," Bran managed, sobering enough to sit up, "but he said-- that you were a lot like him."
"He said that to me too," said Jesse. "Arrogant bastard."
Bran smirked. "And he said you told him a lot about himself."
"Damn right I did," said Jesse belligerently.
"Yeah. He said you thought you were so fucking smart and you knew so much about everybody else and you didn't know shit about yourself, and he realized maybe he didn't either. Know shit about himself."
Jesse shook his head, not sure whether to be offended or pleased. "What else did he say about me?"
"That he found you disturbingly attractive," said Bran, with a sideways grin, "and he wondered if that meant he was a narcissist. But then he said he usually ended up wanting to fuck anyone I was obviously attracted to anyway, and it was probably a competitive thing, and by the way if I didn't stop making cow eyes at Lisa Kareyeva he'd sell me to her, love me or not." Bran thought for a moment as Jesse tried not to cackle. "Oh, he said wasn't I in love with you because you were so much like him except younger and prettier and less overcommitted, and then I hit him and he tackled me and we had sex again."
"I guess that was a no," said Jesse dryly.
Bran laughed again. "Sorry, Jess." He climbed half into Jesse's lap, locked his arms around Jesse's neck, and kissed him again, hard.
"Where is he now?" Jesse asked, gasping for breath, when Bran finally broke the kiss.
"Asleep. I wore him out," said Bran, not without satisfaction.
"You didn't want to sit and gaze adoringly at him while he slept?" Jesse teased.
"No, I wanted to come find you and express my eternal gratitude to you for finally getting him to spit it the fuck out," said Bran, and crushed his lips against Jesse's again as Alix came out into the foyer. Jesse met her eyes past Bran's head.
"Bran," she said gently, and Bran pulled away and looked up at her, a shadow crossing his face for the first time. "Where is he?"
"In your bed, mistress," said Bran nervously. "Asleep."
"Come here," she said softly, and Bran scrambled to his feet and approached her tentatively, standing before her with his gaze respectfully lowered.
"You don't have to look so guilty," she said, reaching up to touch Bran's cheek. "It's just that I deserve a kiss, too."
Bran looked into his mistress' clear, untroubled green eyes for several seconds before leaning down to kiss her gently on the lips. She kissed back softly. When she pulled away, Bran sank to his knees and put his arms around her waist, burying his face against her stomach. She stroked his hair, looking down at him fondly.
"One thing you can say for my husband," she said to Jesse, "he's always had good taste in men."
Part Fifteen
