ąųdįţǫŗę (mentori) wrote in valarlogs, @ 2017-03-19 17:42:00 |
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Entry tags: | !complete, elijah mikaelson, ezio auditore da firenze |
Who: Elijah & Ezio
What: Dinner (and snacking on the human) and important adult talks
When: This weekend?
Where: Elijah's apartment
Rating/Warnings: Somewhat high for language & suggestion, vampirism & blooooooood
Status: Complete
Elijah had invited Ezio over for dinner. Mostly it was because he liked to spend time with Ezio. He also wanted to prove that he wasn’t some heathen that ate frozen TV dinners (and maybe he enjoyed Ezio’s habit of kissing the cook. No one said he was entirely selfless). At least not now. Perhaps he had questionable eating habits when he was younger and when he was in college, but that was a long time ago. Today wasn’t anything fancy, exactly, but he thought that it was all right. Stuffed peppers hadn’t gone wrong for him yet. He’d chosen wine to go with it. Partly to curb any bloodlust. He’d also made a point of eating previously. Even if Ezio had been rather generous with his blood, Elijah was fairly certain it was poor manners to feed on him all the time. Even if he was probably unlikely to turn the other man down if he offered. It was easier to be around people now than it had been before. Ezio’s heartbeat had gone from maddening to comforting. He hadn’t managed to figure out how to focus his senses and block others out yet, but he was still figuring everything out and there was so much all at once that it was mostly like being in sensory overload anytime he had to leave the house. He could hear and see and taste things differently. Everything seemed that much more intense. Emotions especially. That was another thing. He knew that whatever he’d felt for Ezio before had been intensified and Ezio had said that he wanted to stick around - something that was new for him. He just found himself at a loss as to how to respond when people asked what he was. His siblings seemed quicker to assign labels than he was, mostly because he didn’t want to assume anything. Which was another reason for this dinner. He wanted to...know exactly where Ezio stood so he could figure out whether or not he needed to keep an eye on his own emotions. More than he already was. He glanced over his shoulder, studying Ezio for a moment. “Do you have any more death defying acts planned for the recent future?” Wasn’t dating a vampire (freshly risen out of the coffin, even - that was a terrible joke) defying death all on its own? Well, dating, socializing, sleeping with, it was all the same - Ezio was never one to put labels on anything but in this situation, it was perhaps warranted. Some people just needed that sort of thing, for whatever was in their own heads, and Elia was probably one of those people. But Ezio did not mind. It was about time he had something resembling an adult relationship, after flitting from person to person for so long. His mother would be so pleased, though his sister Claudia may faint from shock - they had a good relationship, but were both too stubborn to really get along for extended periods of time. As for other death-defying acts. “Maybe,” he grinned, a crooked smile that accentuated the scar above his upper lip - something he’d gotten when he and Federico fought Vieri de’Pazzi and his gang, a dream taking place when Ezio was so young, his brother still alive. The rock thrown had opened quite a gash; that scar would remain for the rest of his life, both there and here. But anyway, he slid his arms around Elijah from behind, hugging him around the waist. There were dishes to be done, but those could wait. “If I help Evie fight terrorism, unofficially and not so legally, do you consider that death-defying?” he wanted to know, nuzzling at Elijah’s throat with his nose. What fantastic stuffed peppers he made, and even picked wine not from a box to go with them. Elijah usually lived in a world where relationships weren’t as...easily a part of his life. He’d had them, but usually his family got in the way or he got in his own way. He’d considered what Katherine said to him. He hated to admit that he might be too invested in his family at times, but perhaps that was the case. Even in the dreams, so much of what happened had at least some tie to his family. He gave up on happiness so that Klaus could have it instead. He’d said it himself. He would have done anything for his brother. Even give up on his own happiness. He didn’t want to do that here. He wanted to see what would happen and he would do his best not to get in his own way. “Oh really?” He couldn’t help the smile that worked its way across his lips in response to Ezio’s. “I don’t know. Perhaps. Just don’t get yourself hurt. Or call if you have to. For you or your friend.” He would keep an eye on the both of them after the fact, but he would use his ‘insta heal’ blood powers for good if he had to. Speaking of strange vampire side effects… “Also I got you something.” It was likely that it should have been given to Ezio sooner, but he'd spent time to get it and have it made properly. “I should have given it to you earlier, but…” The shoulder opposite of the one where Ezio was rose in a shrug. “A means of protecting you from compulsion. Especially if you’re sticking around.” But if he was honest, he’d have given it to him even if he wasn’t. “Not that I plan on using compulsion on you, but with other vampires around, I don’t really know how much trust I can extend to them. I’d have just suggested drinking vervain, but that would make the blood donations a little painful and mildly unpleasant.” “We will be alright, bello,” Ezio promised, the words purred reassuringly by Elijah’s ear. Being an Assassin took a special sort of skill, but it was something that was passed down through the generations - like instinct, and he and Evie would know what to do. Perhaps they were built for this life. But that didn’t mean Ezio would have necessarily chosen it. Because of that, he did not talk about his own dreams much, oh, and he could - name drop all over the place to really get under the skin of the naysayers (Pazzi, Borgia, da Vinci, Renaissance Italy was what he lived and breathed) - but the shroud of secrecy, a cloak worn not only over the physical body, but the innermost thoughts was also a part of this life. Ezio did not freely volunteer much information. Maybe to Elijah, and to others, but not many. Elia was in a special category all on his own. Then he pulled back to come around and hook his fingers where he best liked them - which was on Elijah’s belt loops. He hoped this conversation could be continued elsewhere, like the bedroom. Or the living room - they could sit on the sofa and watch terrible cooking shows, then get distracted. “What is this gift you have for me, hm? Isn’t vervain an herb, like verbena?” He had cooked with it sometimes. Though he did not understand what that had to do with drinking blood. “I’ll try not to worry too much, then,” he replied. He trusted that Ezio could take care of himself and apparently he survived a high dive, but should something unexpected happen, Elijah figured it best to be the one that got called. Unless they knew someone else with abilities to heal that didn’t involve drinking vampire blood and putting oneself in danger of turning. Of course, that required dying first. It wasn’t like it took a lot of blood to heal someone. He could handle it. But he didn’t push anything because that wasn’t what he wanted to do. Plus, it was a little difficult to argue too much when he was being tugged away from the kitchen and toward...wherever it was they ended up. “A bracelet. Don’t worry. It’s actually not the most hideous thing I’ve ever seen. It’s leather. I figured it was better than a necklace, which seems to be the go-to some of the time. It just has a little charm-like thing with vervain in it.” He paused for a moment. “Ah. Yes. And probably warn me if you do make anything with it. I’ll heal fairly quickly, but really.” He frowned. “It’s...I’m not sure why, but it protects against compulsion and it burns us. I’m not sure it will help with vampires outside of our dreams, but…” He would take care of them if he had to. “For us, at least, it works. Just in case Klaus starts to dream. Or any of the others get any...interesting ideas.” His brow furrowed a little as he spoke, but he forced himself to try to be a little less serious as he reached into his pocket. “If you hate it, I’ll let you choose a replacement. I just...wanted to give you a touch of added protection.” When he pulled his hand back out of his pocket, he held up the bracelet. To the sofa, then. It was the closest piece of furniture in Elia’s high-class, clean-as-a-whistle apartment, and Ezio relaxed into the cushions. The bracelet was taken and studied carefully, though he didn’t put it on right away - there was no reason to, not when he trusted Elijah. And there were no other vampires in the vicinity to even warrant such protection. “Grazie, mio caro. If Leonardo were here, he’d make it into some kind of weapon,” he chuckled fondly, and the token of affection was slipped carefully into his pocket. Is that what it was though, a token of affection? Sweet that Elia did not want him to be compelled by another vampire, and that was perhaps just a kind word for mind assault; the thought of it was shiver-inducing, taking away someone’s free will. He knew that Elijah would only use it to help him feed, however. Not like he was mentally assaulting bartenders for free drinks or something ridicolo. Ezio scooted closer, to steal a kiss - his blood moved fast through him, yet at that kiss warmth drizzled through him slow as syrup instead. “I worry about you too. I worry - about us. There is something I should say.” Speaking of that and everything. The us part. Elijah settled onto the couch, watching him carefully. Well, he didn’t seem to hate it, so Elijah counted that as a small victory. “I’m not sure how, but then I have come up against a vervain grenade, which was entirely unpleasant.” He hadn’t suffered any of the injuries or anything, but he could remember the way his skin burned and the anger that had surged up after being attacked. He wrinkled his nose at that. “So that at least could be used. And stakes.” Not that he was easily affected by stakes. Though, there were quite a lot more white oaks around. He opted not to mention that as his weakness to just anyone however. He didn’t need people actively trying to kill him. “About me? I’m indestructible now. Almost. Basically. Except I can never enjoy white oaks again.” He paused a moment at the second half, though. “What about us is worrying? Unless it is that there is an ‘us’.” He studied him for a moment, biting back on far too many questions. “I just…” A sigh. “What are we, exactly? Or I guess...what sort of an us.” Was that the same question? He wasn’t sure. “Relax, bello,” Ezio smiled reassuringly, his hand framing the side of Elijah’s face - him with his catastrophic eyes (even with the look of hunger in them, those spindly veins beneath and the blown-out pupils); he was so handsome, so classic with a fine bone structure, asymmetrical. And he would stay this way for an eternity, which was both intriguing and sad. It also had to do with what Ezio was going to say next. What are we, exactly? That was a question. One that, admittedly, this Italian had been thinking about. He had flip-flopped back and forth between the answers, but now he was sure. “We are...together, yes? Partners? For as long as you will have me,” he added, bumping noses, his lashes closed, their foreheads touched too. And Ezio sighed. “But I will age, and you will not. I do not want to...ignore this.” One of them was immortal, the other...would grow old. Treating it as the elephant in the room wouldn’t be doing them any favors. “I think that one lifetime of love is worth more than an eternity of emptiness. And however long this lasts, whenever I am gone - I would want you to find someone else. Though we do not have to necessarily talk about it now,” his eyes glinted, golden mischief. “I am not dead yet, and you are mine in the present. I just wanted to...state it upfront.” Elijah had not expected that. He should have expected it, but he did not. “You will,” he agreed. “I wish I could feel okay about asking you to be like me, but I know I couldn’t.” What if something happened and Ezio decided that he did not want to be together anymore? Then he would be stuck. Not to mention that turning was traumatic. He knew that. He’d experienced it. It wasn’t something he’d wish on anyone. Which was why he would never force it upon his other siblings. Not even to protect his heart from the pain of losing them. He understood Kol’s feelings on that matter. That the idea of losing his family and the people he cared for was painful, terrible. But having them live forever and resent him? He couldn’t do that. “I didn’t really expect that line of thought. Which...I guess I should have. All things considered.” But his mind had been preoccupied with concern over what he might have done to complicate things. “I can’t think about being with someone else right now. Especially considering you are right here and very much not old or dead.” He looked at Ezio for a moment. “But I’ll keep it in mind. For when you actually do grow old and die.” His nose scrunched up. “But let’s not think about that too much. I like you alive. I’ll probably still like you when you’re old, though. Unless you are horribly wrinkled and smell like old people.” The amusement was obvious in his voice and he fought against a smile, but he couldn’t quite keep it out of his eyes. “I guess I’ll have to buy you cologne and turn the lights off then.” He moved to steal a kiss. “But until then, I think you’re stuck with me. Unless you decide you eventually want to escape from my horrible sense of humor and my everlasting good looks. It may be more maddening than nice one day. I’ll understand.” Ezio rolled his eyes, “You are terrible and not very charming,” he said, practically climbing in Elijah’s lap - Ezio pinned him back against the cushions for the time being, just so he was close enough to prove that he didn’t smell like ‘old people.’ He probably smelled like wine, the notes of it from the one they drank - black pepper, toffee, fruits - and roasted spices, appropriately enough. “I will be distinguished when I am aged. And will be fucking you well into my seventies and eighties, so not to worry.” He could not say whether or not he’d ever agree to becoming like Elijah, becoming a vampire - that was a very big decision, one to not take lightly. Ezio would have to see how it all went. As of now, he was content to let life take its natural course because that was the way of things, and they should not interfere - but if he went and fell in love with the man, a deep and all-encompassing love, well, that made you do crazy things sometimes. “And yet, here you are.” Elijah was very much aware that he didn’t smell like old people now. There were quite a few things, all of which blended together to form something altogether pleasant. He knew now that if he drank from Ezio, he would taste the wine on his blood. “So I think that means that you still like me. Maybe my looks are what’s saving me.” There was a hint of laughter as Ezio spoke again. “Oh. Well, I will certainly hold you to it, then. Both being distinguished and the fucking.” He laughed again. “But I believe you. I’m sure you will be both distinguished and fucking me well into your 70s and 80s.” There was a hint of sadness at the idea, but he was determined to treat this the same as he would should his other siblings continue to age. He would just enjoy what time there was. “Si, bello. Potrei guardarti tutto il giorno,” Ezio spoke the words smoothly, a warmth and deepness to them - that accent. It was less cliched Mafia henchmen, more Frangelico liqueur, golden and sweet. “Perhaps by that time too, you will actually be fluent in Italian.” It was teasing since as of now, Elia seemed to only know the dirty words and some simpler ones - thank you, you’re welcome, nice to meet you. But Ezio would teach him more as time went on, really immerse him in that culture. He shifted on his lover’s lap, managing to hold his weight so that the tension was in his arms, his hands, which he had on either side of Elijah’s head on the couch cushion. “Are you still tempted by me? Or will you grow bored of the taste of my blood?” The dirty words and the ones that were said often enough for him to pick up were easier to get down. He had yet to find a situation where he didn’t enjoy hearing Ezio speak Italian, though, so he was sure with time he would manage it. “I think I might have managed it by then. But who knows? Rebekah tells me there was a time we were in Italy in the dreams, so maybe I’ll have some language knowledge that passes over. Once I get there.” But he hadn’t been there and he knew that didn’t end well for him. “But then I might also wake up with a dagger in my heart, so who can say if that dream adventure will be worth it.” Elijah’s gaze shifted for a moment, focusing on his neck before he forced them up to Ezio’s face. “I will always be tempted.” The words were said like a promise, but he felt that they were true enough. He was a vampire. If he ever reached a day when he was not tempted, he would be surprised. “Are you sure you’re going to want to let me feed on you for that long?” Always was a long time, but Ezio believed him. He was also flattered that the siren song of his blood, his pulse, would be so intoxicating after all those days, weeks, months, years. “I do not mind,” he assured - and he even liked it, as he told Elijah before. It was maybe a kink, or fascination, he did not know he possessed - but then again, how would he have known? No one had ever drank his blood prior to this relationship. “As it stands, I am going to want it. Things can change but this is the way it is now,” he added, fingertips gently tracing where the inky, spidery veins were beneath Elijah’s eyes - they were not visible now, but Ezio had long since memorized the look of them. His words were also an invitation, if Elia wanted it now too; Ezio watched him meaningfully. The first couple of buttons on his shirt were already undone, because that is how he wore it (he did not button up entirely like his stiff, proper partner). Elijah would just have to take care of the rest. Elijah was well aware of the fact that he’d fed once already, but the invitation was enough to make him want it. He wondered if there ever would come a time when that stopped being the case. Not with Ezio, but in general. The veins that were gone before started forming and his sclera turned red. He could hear Ezio’s pulse thrumming through his veins, noticed subtle changes in his heartbeat. He felt that he might actually be able to pick him out in a crowd at this point, but he’d never had to. He breathed through it, trying to focus on something other than the bloodlust. Most of his attention was on the task of unbuttoning Ezio’s shirt. He could afford to buy him a new shirt if he made a mess of the one he was wearing now, but he thought it might be easier to just not make a mess. For now. He was not nearly as considerate with the strangers he ran into. With the buttons undone, he pushed it back and away. There was a small part of him that wanted to ask if he was sure, but he’d asked for it before and Elijah wasn’t really sure he could resist when Ezio was so close. He pulled Ezio closer, hands keeping him still as he sank his teeth into his neck. Elijah's eyes slid closed as he drank. He'd been right. He could taste the wine. It changed the taste, but it wasn't so overwhelming as to bother him. His focus was mostly on the other man’s heartbeat, trying to keep from taking too much. This time he forced himself to pull back before he'd taken too much. It was progress, proof he might be able to stop worrying one day. He closed his eyes, focusing on pushing back the spidery veins under his eyes and the red that came with it. “Are you okay?” Elijah’s grip was steel, and Ezio couldn’t move when those teeth pierced flesh - not like he struggled though, or even wanted to get away. Instead he just groaned, hips shifting, grinding in Elijah’s lap. He was certain it was different with the strangers Elia fed on (he’d be a little offended otherwise), but all Ezio felt was trust and connection and sun beneath the skin - it was honestly like they were here, he was a snack, but yet the whole thing was happening in some dreamworld. Warm, woozy, and draining. Blood dripped from the neck wound in rivulets, and Elijah’s mouth was bloody too, but Ezio kissed him - fireworks, an electric shock of a kiss. “Yes,” he finally said once he could breathe, their lips still touching, blood on Ezio’s now too. His skin had a bit of a pallor to it, but he still wasn’t dead or even close to passing out. If that was some comfort. Then he just shucked the shirt off entirely, inhaled sharply through his nose, and went for another kiss, pushing his tongue past Elijah’s lips insistently. “I hope it is not like that when you drink from other people,” he breathed out, eyes heavy lidded, fringed with long lashes that fell over mostly blown out pupils, a sign of arousal. “I would get jealous.” His eyes didn’t go back to normal for very long. Ezio seemed to have that kind of affect on him. His fingers moved along Ezio’s neck, slick with blood. Between kisses, he bit down on his tongue in an effort to help speed along the healing process. It wasn’t like anyone would notice more blood at this point. “Rarely,” he began. “Are any of them shirtless or kissing me with blood on my lips, in their mouth.” He smiled, sharp teeth showing as he did. “But no. It’s all very mechanical when it’s not you.” His hands slid down to Ezio’s hips, leaving a trail of blood down one side. His lips pressed against the Italian man’s neck. “You’re the only one I want to fuck after. You make it difficult to keep my face normal.” But he wasn’t sure if this was really the abnormal face in this scenario. He could taste copper and iron in their kisses now, and Ezio wasn’t sure who this life force belonged to - he or Elijah - but it didn’t really matter. His own teeth were stained red, it must have made for a macabre sight - and yet he seemed to feel more energized now. Clearly slurping up his partner’s blood had the desired effect. “Then don’t try,” he insisted, taking a moment to study Elijah’s face - it should have been a terrifying sight; in a way, it was. But one that made Ezio all the more aroused. “Forget about being normal. I want you just like this.” He gently held that face in his hands, Elijah’s words not doing anything to calm him down - then again, that was perhaps the point. You’re the only one I want to fuck after. Well, if that was not the most flattering thing he had ever heard. “Let’s go to bed,” was his next suggestion, laden with desire. “Yes?” Ezio, it seemed, always had the right thing to say stored away until he had to use it. And use it, he did. With his words hanging in the air and his hands on his face, Elijah felt more at ease with the monstrous part of himself. It hadn’t really been easy to accept himself - at least not this part of it - but the way Ezio looked at him made it easier. Elijah made a point to carefully stand up, hands holding him up. “Yes,” was all he said before he used his vampire speed to get to his room. When they got there, he dropped Ezio onto the bed, smiling down at him for a moment before crawling onto the bed. “As much as I hate to admit it, the benefits are making the negative parts of this whole thing seem less negative.” “Merda,” Ezio swore, but he laughed too, breathless and slightly dizzy from the very brief ‘trip’ over here. His own Assassin skills granted him enhanced speed (helpful, when freerunning or evading pursuers, perhaps) but being able to blink from one place to the next was a whole other talent. Elijah had done that with him a few times and yet he still wasn’t used to it - but it was kind of a thrill each time anyway, if he was being honest. He pulled Elijah closer, ensnaring him, one knee draped over his hip - the other followed suit, on the opposite side, and maybe Ezio was not the one who craved blood, but he was just as hungry. “Bene. You do not even have to think about the negatives now anyway,” another kiss, tainted with blood and longing, “Just fuck me.” It was what he wanted, and he surrendered entirely. For the person he loved, though he could not say that quite yet. Maybe...some other time. |