Return of the Merchant

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Lumi runs past the reflecting pool, through the Temple of Life, on his way to find High Priestess Amani. He feels dizzy, with his mind unable to settle between his concern and his excitement at Amani’s summons. He whirls through all the possibilities he can conjure: a punishment for some forgotten act of carelessness; a conference of grandmotherly concern and disapproval; or perhaps there was news of Khimi. With one brief thought of the merchant from his dreams, Lumi’s heart throbs and he accelerates. He passes under the temple’s arched entrance and nearly crashes into an elder presenting a tour for a visiting faithful, both of whom frown at him. With a quick apology called back, he skips back into step without another thought. He slows to a trot as he reaches the entrance of Saint Nina’s sanctum.

From beneath the heavy doors Lumi can smell Nina’s favorite incense as it wafts out; as excited as he is, he chooses to see it as a welcoming sign. He steps up close enough to press his hand against the surface and pauses. Against the stone surface, he can feel the reverberation of someone speaking within the holy space. With a moment’s deliberation, he decides to be cautious and sets his short ears against the flat of it.

He can immediately recognize the voices of Amani and Nina in conversation with the sanctum. Despite a shiver, he resolves to listen in; no one likes to be interrupted when they have an important conversation, as Lumi had heard time and again. He wrings a comforting hand into his linen chiton. The first full statement he can comprehend comes from Amani. “You know as well as I,” he hears her call out at a volume loud enough that he could not misunderstand, “only the chosen may speak with the gods! Either he lies with every word or he cannot be of our order!” she exclaims. Lumi feels himself withering inside. “I have my hopes for him, but we have ignored the obvious far too long!”

Nina groans, a sound Lumi has not heard before from her. “You speak with such certainty, Amani, that I might caution you of your tone. I have considered the circumstances, as have you.” Lumi thinks he can make out a scoff from the High Priestess. “There is precedence to support communication between acolytes and the divine,” she replies. “Do you see no reality where both could be true, a chance he still belongs to our order?”

“Nina, do you refer to Durin the Deceiver? I think it hardly the appropriate time for you to make jokes.” she spits back. “He was hated the world over; the angel who spoke for him was under a geas^[1]!”

“Hearsay and heresy from the small-minded. The faithful are known to ignore difficult truths. Would you follow their example?” asks Nina, her voice like stone. “I have seen much and more of this world. I recall instances where two chosen presented their calling at the same time.”

Amani wheezes in frustration. “How long must you tempt fate with him? You could bring ruin to our temple!” Amani yells, before she releases a long, weary sigh. “Have you considered that he is a saint from another domain? Nina, you could incite war within the Faith. They could accuse you of holding their voice^[2] hostage!”

“And so you would ask a mother to cast out her child from her home?”

“I ask you to see reason, saint. You do him no favors holding him here. The clerics suspect you of negligence in your duties, frivolity and favoritism. As the Head Priestess, I have a duty to our order,” Amani says. “For the sake of us all, for your children, Nina… we cannot keep him here any longer. You must–”

Overwhelmed, Lumi releases the whine he had held in his throat through their conversation. Hastily, he covers his mouth and thus knocks into the door panels with a thud.

Nina shushes Amani. “You may enter,” beckons the saint.

Lumi steadies his voice against his emotions. “S-Saint Nina!” he replies, remembering her request to keep cheerful. He cracks the door and pops his head through the opening. “And Amani! I am here looking for you, Cara told me that you needed me.” He smiles blithely at the two women. Their expressions are fierce, their body language guarded. On the other side of the door, Lumi’s tail quakes.

Nina attempts a smile at him. Amani clears the phlegm from her hoarse throat and says, “Lumi, I apologize. I had need of you early today for storeroom responsibilities. Cara must have been delayed in conveying them–I almost forgot I had requested you,” Amani says behind a deep frown, meeting his eyes coolly. “The situation is handled. Please return and inform Cara of this, as well. The saint and I are discussing something important, so run along.”

“Right, yes. Sorry. I-I’ll go back,” he says, then looks innocently to Saint Nina. “Sorry, Nina, I interrupted. I-is everything alright?” Lumi lets his ears sag with worry.

“Please return to your chambers, Lumi.” She nods sagely. “We are fine.”

“Run along, Lumi.” Amani turns from him.

He closes the door behind them. A cold shiver shakes his form. He sprints away from the Temple Sanctum, unable to consider the direction. As he runs down an inner hall, a group of acolytes crowd the space, on their way to something, but he can’t care. Desperately, he nudges past the flock, hoping no one is knocked over but unable to check, and continues his panicked escape.

Out of breath, Lumi finds himself before the reflecting pool without processing the path he took to get there. He walks to the edge of the water and lets himself drop to his knees. Panicked eyes attempt to settle on the mosaic tiles set in the pool’s floor. As his gaze stills, he can make out his muddled reflection in the lapping surface. The crying starts, then. Lumi’s fingers clutch tightly the top of his tunic and his tears drip down his cheek to meet the pool. Over and over, the conversation between his guardians runs in his thoughts. I’m endangering everyone. Amani wouldn’t lie. Nina’s reputation… They should have left me in the desert if it was going to make things so difficult for her. He starts to hyperventilate. Will they send me away? What will I do? How will I find Khimi? What if he never comes? He hears someone behind him. Don’t let them see. I can figure it out. It will all work out.

“Lumi?” asks a familiar voice from behind him. “Is something in the water?”

Lumi turns a little to see Keira behind him. “Keira, uh, it was… I was running and some sand got in my eye. I tried to get it out.” He cups his hands and dunks them into the pool, flinging water up onto his face. “Sorry, I bet I look weird,” Lumi deflects. He turns around fully to greet his roommate and wipes at his sopping cheeks.

Keira frowns at him. “You are seriously a compulsive liar, you know that? And not even a good one,” she replies. “I’ve enough sense that I can tell when something is wrong with you.”

He giggles awkwardly. “Oh, what? No, I j-jus’ had a moment. Thinking about home or somethin’.”

“You? Homesick? I don’t think you’ve ever talked about home before.” She kneels down to squint at him. “Aslan are from Dolmas? Is that where you’re from?” She takes an open hand and cups his shoulder with it.

“Y-yes, the jungles. It’s very different from here. Sometimes I miss, uh, the roasts? We travel around and kinda eat whatever we can hunt in the area. Lotta spices, though, and meats,” he rambles, not meeting Keira’s searching eye contact.

Keira chuckles. “Would you show me how to make it, if we went down to the kitchens?” she asks, moving her hand up Lumi’s shoulder to caress his cheek. “I’m curious. We don’t use heavy spices in Loria.”

Lumi’s face wrinkles against her. “K-Keira, I’m fine, I don’t need you to make me feel better,” he replies, but then thinks better of it. “So, we could raid the kitchens to make it?”

“If that will get you out of this strange mood, I’ll allow it,” she says with a nod. Standing up from the stone patio, she offers Lumi a hand and he takes it. “I hear your man could be coming any day now,” she offers.

Lumi worries Keira is only trying to distract him, but he does want to talk about Khimi. He lets out a lengthy sigh. “Are people still talking about it? All that happened is he sent another letter and it seemed like he might return this season. It feels like an age since he was here,” he answers, attempting a neutral voice, “and I can’t help but feel I made an ass of myself, then.” His tail belies his frustration.

She walks with him towards the kitchen and he follows dutifully. “You absolutely came on too strong. But what do I know? I’ve never experienced romance… and I’ve certainly never felt so intensely about a man,” Keira counters, “so perhaps your forcefulness paid off!”

Lumi chuckles, but her genuineness makes him blush. “Sure, Keira. Thanks,” he says quietly. “Hells… If only I could have had some privacy with him!”

Keira palms her face at Lumi’s words. “Is that the only thing on your mind? Honestly.”

“What could be more important? The physical expression of love. Don’t tell me you’re squeamish!” he replies and she scoffs back. “This is the Temple of Life! Some days it feels that all the faithful need us for midwifery and nothing else. Love is all around!” he says with an excited lilt.

“Sure, you have it all figured out. Since we’re talking about it, I had an odd conversation with Hasim: he asked on the matter of you and Lord Zeybek,” she replies thoughtfully. “It seemed he wanted a word with you.”

“Hasim? About me and Khimi?” Lumi says. He laments his luck, between this and his earlier eavesdropping. “Why does he need to butt in! Hasim hates me! And I defended him to Melia and it got me in trouble.” He grimaces. Keira snorts at his dramatics. “Hey, you two chat often, don’t you? I’ve never asked, but are the rumors about him true?” Lumi notices her smile drops. “I m-mean… All I hear about is ‘Hasim is a cannibal’, ‘Hasim is a concubine’, ‘Hasim whores himself out.’ What is up with all that?”

“For someone at the center of a lot of rumors, you’re quite quick to parrot them,” replies Keira. “Hasim was a concubine in Dolmas, but, the way he tells it, it is something like a religious office. An honorable position in the Dolman Empire.”

“W-wait, like… actually? What kind of position is that?”

“He doesn’t share a lot about it. I do know for certain, though, that many of those that traveled here with him were concubines, as well–followers from the temple who fled to find Nina and Amani,” she answers, before tilting her head. “Did you not just say that you were born in Dolmas? You don’t know any of their religious practices?” Her suspicion makes him nervous, but he laughs to cover it. She notices. “Whatever, don’t worry about it. I suppose you were a child.” Keira ruffles his hair. After the morning he had, the contact feels more reassuring than usual. “He was not upset when we discussed it. Why don’t you go speak with him and meet me in the kitchens later?” she adds. “I’ll swipe you some dessert, besides.” He nods rapidly and beams up at his roommate. She smiles back. With a quick goodbye hug, Lumi dashes off to find Hasim on his patrol.

The temple’s inner sanctum was surrounded by an array of sandstone pillars; within and along them, the temple guards made their patrol rounds. Lumi had always admired their white tunics with artful blue embroidery. The majority of the current guard were those same Dolman refugees as Hasim. Lumi retraces his steps to the inner sanctum: he had not seen Hasim there on his journey earlier in the day, but he had been preoccupied. On the eastern side, he sees Hasim in conversation with another patrolman. He approaches and tries to fight back the uneasiness that the older man always summoned inside him. Lumi had seen other yilan^[3], since they were also native to Dolmas; it was something of Hasim’s features, his black snake-like tail and the dappling of scales across his mahogany skin, combine to give him this kind of impenetrable grace and poise. He remembers Cara had once gone on and on to him, raving about Hasim’s handsomeness and his arresting, hypnotic eyes. Lumi had always thought him haughty, but he is definitely the best-looking temple guard.

“Hasim!” He jogs forward. “Keira told me! You wanted to discuss something?”

Hasim shoots him with a glare while the patrolman next to him fights open laughter. “Lumi, do you have any manners? I’m making my rounds.”

The aslan did not recognize the other temple guard by name, but he looks sheepishly between them. “Sorry. But Keira said!”

The lighter-colored yilan shrugs good-naturedly. “You can go, Hasim; I’ll not tattle.” It is to him that Hasim directs his glare, then, before he grabs Lumi’s arm and drags him off.

Lumi groans out loud, but relents. Hasim is his most frequent disciplinarian, of the temple residents who had cared for him since he was young. Whenever Lumi had gotten into disagreements with the other acolytes, it had often been Hasim who put Lumi in his place: scolding him, reprimanding him, and forcing him into dozens of hours training in the heat. No matter what anyone said of Hasim, no one could deny he was the most skilled spearman of anyone who had come to the Temple of Life. Even back in the tribe, Lumi could recall no one there who matched Hasim’s control and ferocity. Although he was glad to be trained by such a strong arms-man, Lumi often hears the yilan’s cutting criticisms ringing in his mind. He is certain this would end in another punishment.

 “Are you gonna make me fight you again?” he whines as Hasim pulls him towards his quarters. “I am sorry I interrupted. It’s been a long day.“

“‘Fight’? Who said anything about fighting?” Hasim inquires, turning back only briefly from his lead. “Do I need to punish you for something? Why has it been a long day?”

“Nothing! Just… Amani. I didn’t do anything.”

Hasim laughs, with his lisping rasp. “You’re always making some trouble, if the rumor mill is correct.” The two walk quickly past the acolyte chambers into a much wider and nicer area of the temple. The passage opens into a large, rounded chamber, with arches, denoting separate bed chambers for the guards. Lumi had rarely been to this wing of the living quarters each entering into separate rooms. “Are my trainings so miserable? I have fun with them,” he jokes, before motioning Lumi to follow him through one of the arched doorways and shutting the wooden door behind him.

Lumi pouts openly before replying, “Fun, yeah. You had me run quarterstaff drills for hours! In the sun! My skin got so burnt it hurt to sleep.” He looks around the room, in which he cannot recall ever setting foot. The bedchamber feels barren, except for a fairly large bed and a few tapestries hanging from the wall. Across the face of one is a slash of text in an unfamiliar script, stitched in using glittering thread that shines against the dark cloth.

“What can I say? I had to do something to keep you out of trouble.” He gestures for Lumi to relax with a curt wave.

Lumi stares in defiance. “I am an adult grown, Hasim—I keep out of trouble for the most part,” he replies.

“Oh, sweet Lumi,” Hasim laughs again, cocking an eyebrow in disbelief.

Lumi flops onto Hasim’s bed, his tail shaking with annoyance. “Whatever! Why am I even here? Keira mentioned—uh, that it had to do with Lord Zeybek,” he asks, his ears twitching when he almost uses Khimi’s given name.

The older man looks at him dryly. He rifles through a large chest near the bed and pulls out from it a sandalwood box. “You and I have not spoken much since Lord Zeybek’s visit. I have not heard it from your lips, but the whole temple seems convinced of something between you. Do you have… what is your relationship with this man?” he asks, not even facing the aslan. His posture tells Lumi that he would rather be anywhere but here.

“Hasim!” he exclaims, his mouth open wide in shock. “Surely not! Do you… Feel something for me?”

“W-what?!” The yilan chokes. He whirls around to face Lumi. “Gods be good! Of all the ridiculous suggestions,” he groans. His black scaly tail flexes behind him across the sandstone tiles. “Absolutely not, you twit.”

Lumi cocks his head to the side with a shrug. “Well, sorry! I wouldn’t blame you if you did, but then what is this about?” he asks, biting his lip against a smile.

“Lumi, you’re really not my type.”

“As if!”

“Shush!” jabs Hasim. He sits on the bed across Lumi and places the box behind, before turning back to their conversation. “Listen to me. I am aware the other temple residents share rumors behind my back.”

Lumi fakes a shocked expression. “You? Sweet ol’ Hasim?” he adds with a laugh. “Yeah, they definitely say you’re into men,” he teases with a shake of his hips.

Hasim barks a rasping laugh. “Oh, do they! You know, you might think about becoming a minstrel or something; I would definitely pay to laugh at you.”

For a moment, Lumi thinks he’s receiving a compliment. “Fine, whatever, talk. I’m done interrupting. What’s in the box, though?” Lumi inquires, drawing closer.

Hasim pulls the container from behind him. “If you plan on pursuing something with this bigshot lord, you’ll need some…” he whispers, his voice trailing. “You’ll need some things to get ready.”

“Well, like what? What am I supposed to do?”

“You’ll need to use some type of oil to prepare yourself. You can’t just let him stick it in without preparing,” Hasim instructs, shutting his eyes closed tight. “I mean, he could, but it would hurt like you’re being stabbed.”

“H-Hasim! Are you talking about sex?” Lumi asks in shock. He just about jumps off the bed.

“As if I’m not. You’re a little monster. And I know they teach the acolytes of pregnancy, but this is different. Things I wish someone had told me before I was with a man,” Hasim murmurs.

Lumi gets up from the bed, shakes out a skeeved shiver, and sits on top of the wooden chest. He eyes the yilan suspiciously and crosses his arms. “I’m listening.”

Hasim chuckles. He opens the box and moves it between them for a better look. “So, these are different oils that I kept from–well, from when I was close to your age, perhaps.” He removes a vial from within and shakes it in front of Lumi. “This is an oil from pressed olives, like they have in the west. My personal preference, although different people will have different opinions,” Hasim explains.

“Wait… Hasim, do you not still have sex? Keira just told me that you used to be a concubine.”

With a world-weary groan, he replies, “Keira tells you too much. I took a vow of celibacy when Nina asked me and the other yilan to leave Dolmas with her,” Hasim whispers, “so, it was never really something that was going to come up.””

“A vow of celibacy? Why… ? Hasim, you should have sex, it’s good for the soul. I heard someone say it once,” Lumi offers archly.

“That is what they say, yes. Sex can be wonderful when it aims to bring two people closer together, but that was not my go of things… And those things may be different for you, if this young lord treats you well,” Hasim clarifies. “I have known how scary that can be and I don’t want you to have to experience that… when you’re with someone who matters to you.”

Lumi’s eyes shake with emotion. “Hasim…” he whimpers, near tears, “th-that is… really kind of you! K-kinder than I thought you could ever be. You’ve always been s-such a jerk.”

Hasim laughs. “Maybe I’ve always been nice and you’ve been a spoiled brat. Are the tears quite necessary?”

“I just think… how few people here actually care about me,” Lumi sighs, looking into the yilan’s garnet-colored eyes. “How long have I been here, that I haven’t put down roots?” He could count on one hand the temple residents who mean something to him: Nina, Hasim, Cara, Keira… Amani, when they each feel generous.

Hasim can see his thoughts brewing, Lumi guesses by his expression. He thumps the aslan on the head. “Don’t talk like that,” he replies. “People are jealous. Nina holds you special in her heart and the others wish they could have such a position. Just greedy. And you have also knocked around a few when you have one of your moods,” he adds with a gentle laugh.

“What? It isn’t that many!” Lumi says with a grimace. No one knew better than Hasim how often Lumi had fought other acolytes or had retaliated when a teacher opted for corporal punishment. He covers his face with his palms in embarrassment.

“And still Nina sings you to sleep every night,” Hasim says, laughing again.

Lumi sighs, shaking his head from side to side. His ears flatten. “Hasim, quit it–I’m serious. Think I am going to leave the temple.”

Hasim’s laughing mood falls immediately at that. He looks at Lumi in shock. “You can’t be serious. You’ll leave? To where, exactly?”

“I plan on asking Khimi to take me with him to Rhaz. He wrote about it in his last letter and it sounds wonderful. It might not be right away, but I think we are meant to be together. That can only happen if I leave with him.”

Hasim pinches the bridge of his strong nose. “Lumi, please take more time to consider this. He has not even offered! Even more, have you ever been to the Desert Cities? You can’t imagine what it’s like for us, beastkin. In some places, beastkin are traded as slaves.”

Lumi frowns as the yilan pokes holes in his fantasies. “Hasim, don’t be so negative. I would be safe with Khimi,” he replies, attempting to assuage the concerns.

“I know I trained you myself, but will you really fight off a group of slavers? Your little lord will protect you?” Hasim asks. “Promise me that, should your ridiculous plan work out, you won’t wander the streets on your own.” He places an arm on Lumi’s shoulder. “Otherwise, I will go mad with worry over my favorite student.” Lumi shrugs, avoiding Hasim’s eyes.

After an awkward, expectant moment, he turns back to his teacher and nods gratefully. “I’m sorry. I promise. Can we talk more about nice stuff? What’s this?” he asks, pointing at an unfamiliar implement in the sandalwood box.

He listens carefully to Hasim’s world-weary guidance. Lumi feels his resentment towards the older man melting away while they continue running through ins and outs of particular mechanics. He is quick to press Hasim for each and every detail, creating some shy reminiscing from his teacher. Lumi hopes he can lean on this relationship as he steels himself for the future. Laughter erupts from the room over and again throughout the conversation, late into the evening.

Khimi’s Arrival

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Lumi sits alert on the temple steps with his eyes trained on the canyon below them. From early that morning, he had waited here for the moment when the Cerulean Star’s caravan would come into view. He yawns into the warm breeze. Amani had told him to be reasonable—that he should go about his day as if nothing were happening—but Nina intervened, knowing how important this was to Lumi. He knows there cannot be much longer until it arrives: the caravan’s messenger pigeon could only have come from so far away.

Dust stirs just beyond the bend in the canyon. The young man lays his head on his fist, balanced against his knee, and watches the swirl of it. Will he think I’m delusional again this time? I want to go with him. He won’t take me yet, it’s too soon, he debates internally, slowly getting himself more and more agitated. I would hate for him to think me desperate; Hasim said it scares men away… But I am desperate, so why should I hide it? Lumi presses his free palm against his eyelids, fighting back sleepy tears in the salty air. He looks up at the sun and attempts to estimate the hour. The sun’s steady warmth radiates against his skin, and he debates basking in it. Any time now, Khimi.

The temple stands behind him in its resolute grandeur. Lumi glances back upside-down at its stone façade and thinks on his first moments here as a child. Eustes, the acolyte who had found him, had long since left the temple after depositing Lumi with Saint Nina. As he had done for decades, he traveled the Desert Cities and proselytized. Lumi did not miss him much, though; in the times since then that Eustes had visited the Temple of Life, he had been sour and unfriendly. But Lumi would miss the temple, he knows he would. Even from the first moment he climbed its steps, he had known that a new chapter in his life would begin. He feels something of that same energy now.

At his sensitive ear, yips and calls ring out from the canyon on approach to the Temple. The commotion has Lumi bolting to his feet. Overeager, he scans the terrain for signs of activity and sees it in the distance: a line of wagons, The carts are pulled by dappled mares, working their way through the sloped land, while merchants on camels flank either side of the caravan line. Lumi’s tail wags wildly as he tracks the trail of the wagons lumbering their way closer to the base of the stairs. A bell rings from inside the temple and the acolytes respond in accord, pacing down from the entrance to meet the wagon drivers. Lumi sees Cara skipping out from the temple and down the steps, before she turns back to shoot her roommate an obscene gesture. Lumi sticks his tongue out at her, and she giggles as she speeds down to coordinate the efforts.

It takes everything within Lumi to resist chasing her down the staircase, running past them all. He crosses his arms with a wince. He has no taste for these kinds of games and manipulations. He watches the other acolytes as they approach the caravan drivers and direct the traffic through the canyon base. From his vantage point, he immediately spots a more ornate wagon second from the front. The wagon slows and Khimi’s advisor, Rashid, peeks his head out from within its canvas-covered back. That’s him. They’re here, he thinks as his heart skips a beat. Why is it only Rashid? Maybe I’m just a bother. Did Khimi even come at all? He whines at himself, allowing the remaining wagons to pass his eyes. He turns and walks towards the temple entrance, his thoughts consumed with what to do and what to think. When he reaches the doorway, he hears someone call out to him from behind.

“Were you not here to greet me?” asks the husky, warm voice in a shout. Lumi whips around to see its source. Lord Khimi Zeybek stands on the highest flight of stairs, shielding his eyes with his hand. He’s grinning at Lumi, with his smile fierce and crisp against his deep bronze skin. “You were so patient waiting here.” Gradually, Khimi continues making his way to him.

Lumi melts. He clutches the hem of his chiton. “I didn’t expect your lordship to come looking for me,” he chirps back mischievously. Lumi knows his face is blushing, as he can feel the palpable current of heat through him. “Welcome back to the Temple of Life.”

He is losing backbone fast. Everything about Khimi arouses him and he feels utterly helpless as they grow nearer. The man’s inky hair brushes against his brow; his dark cerulean eyes hold a steady gaze on Lumi; a darker scar cuts down the line of his strong nose to his left cheek. His knees wobble with anticipation. He’s here.

Khimi draws up to him at the entryway. “He did come looking for you. I have thought much on our last discussion, since my previous visit,” he says with a slow and measured nod. “Have you?”

“Uh, yeah! Yes, I have.” Lumi’s ears wiggle. “What are your thoughts?” he asks neutrally, his tail flailing behind him.

“I have considered if you might be right. I have considered that… as you told me, if there is something that I want, then I should pursue it.” Khimi hums appreciatively, then looks down to face him, reaching out his hand to thumb gently at the top of Lumi’s waist.

The bodily contact is scorching. Lumi anxiously runs a hand up through his hair. “You must have had a difficult time away from me, huh?” he asks with a taunting smile, his neck craned to hold eye contact at such a distance.

Khimi purses his lips. “I am glad you seem so self-assured and unbothered,” he counters. “For me, you could say that our few months apart were a little much.” His fingers begin caressing Lumi’s narrow hipbone. “In fact, I needed to see you. There was too much we could not say in our letters,” he whispers. His thumb runs down to Lumi’s pelvis, through the clingy linen chiton, and it presses into the flesh there. With the back of his grip, he draws Lumi closer to him still.

Lumi bites his lip in excitement. “Thank you for writing. They did keep me occupied, once I had help with reading them,” he replies blithely. Internally, he whoops and cheers. “I look forward to hearing what you have to say. Nina told me she set aside a private room for you this time.” He lets show a relaxed fanged smile. “Maybe we could continue our conversation there? Privately?”

Khimi sighs. “Her generosity is appreciated. However, I realized it would be inappropriate to take the room instead of Rashid, considering his advanced age,” he says bluntly and pats Lumi’s shoulder apologetically with his free hand. “I hope you understand.”

Lumi’s hold on his emotions snaps. He breaks eye contact to look down at his feet. He can feel the flare of his embarrassment up into his scalp. “Y-yes, of course,” he mutters back. “Forgive my f-forwardness, I—”

Khimi snorts. “Oh, the look on your face right now,” Khimi interrupts, adding a gentle chuckle. “I’m sorry, it was a joke. I have every intention of spending private time with you.”

 Lumi throws up his head to meet Khimi’s eyes. “You’re awful. That scared me, Khimi!” he grumbles. Khimi draws him in by his hip and presses their bodies together. Lumi feels a full-body spark—and receives another laugh from Khimi, this time darker in tone. “I think you need to make it up to me. Maybe I can show you to your chambers now?”

Khimi twists around loosely to look back in the direction he came. The caravan continues winding through the canyon at the temple residents’ direction. At the base of the steps, Lumi notices Cara leading a bridled horse, and she waves at the two of them; Khimi waves back cordially. “I passed my horse off to Cara so I could see you sooner. Your roommate, as I understand it? She had some interesting things to say about you,” he says back at him with a wink. “I fear I will be missed by my retainers, but you are very persuasive,” he admits with a theatrical sigh. “I hope they will survive without me.”

Lumi feels stunned, disarmed entirely by Khimi. “Your men can wait, I’m sure. I can’t wait any longer.” He pulls himself back from against Khimi and takes his hand, his tail wags expectantly behind him.

Khimi tries to hide the smile on his face. “Lead on, Acolyte Lumi. I only tease,” he replies, staying close on Lumi’s heels while he is led into the temple.

“I don’t remember you being particularly funny last time!” Lumi groans, yanking him by the arm impatiently.

Khimi snickers. “Is it so difficult to believe that I’m in a better mood this time?”

Lumi hums back, suspicious and pleased. He guides them through the sandstone halls in silence, speeding towards the bedchamber Nina designated for the young Lord Zeybek. Lumi’s bare feet make gentle footfalls on the tile, almost two for every one of Khimi’s booted steps. As the pair crosses the path of temple residents, hand-in-hand, they receive gossipy looks from acolytes and uncomfortable glances from the clerics and others. Together, they dash past the reflecting pool and down a small staircase, which leads into a humble, comfortable sitting room. Four arched wooden doors line the walls of the large round room—the entrances to several guestroom suites. Lumi pulls his guest past the floor cushions inside the far-left bedchamber.

With a fierce grin, he looks up into Khimi’s eyes and presses them both against the door to close it. He growls and thrusts a knee between Khimi’s much larger legs. Khimi is caught off guard and looks Lumi up and down, seeming pleasantly surprised. He squats down and grabs Lumi by the back of his thighs to lift him against his body. Lumi wraps him with his legs, knees held against the wooden door. He brings his lips to Khimi’s cheek. He’s so strong, Lumi thinks to himself. I love being in his arms.

 Pulling back to look directly into those deep, dark blues, he whispers, “What do you want, my lord?”

Khimi smiles softly at his words. “I want you, Lumi, if you will have me.” He nods back and they close the distance between their mouths.

Lumi’s eyes flutter shut. First kiss, my first, our first kiss. Khimi’s lips work against his own, slowly and then faster. Lumi lets his tongue escape first, licking the back of the man’s teeth. Khimi presses in his own tongue to meet him: his is heavy and wet, shoving deeper, and tasting the roof of his mouth. Lumi savors the taste of spirits and smoke from Khimi, but winces at the feel of harsh stubble against his chin. He feels a sudden shift in their balance from underneath them and then opens his eyes. Khimi lays him flat on the room’s featherbed, pulls away from the kiss, and dips his hand between Lumi’s legs. Warm fingers run up the inside of his thigh and make their way up his chiton. Touch me. Need more. When Khimi’s fingers reach his arousal, caressing it under the cloth, Lumi’s body trembles. Fuck me. Take me. He tenses his wrapped legs, keeping Khimi as tight to him as possible. Just like my dreams. A giddy laugh escapes Lumi’s lips.

Frenzied, Khimi pulls back from their heavy kiss. Lumi watches as he adjusts the bulge of his arousal through his sarouel. The sight of it makes him throb somewhere unfamiliar. Hells, was that him? He’s… big. With haste, Khimi unbuckles his jacket, but not before his hands fumble over the clasp in his haste. Lumi smiles, his tail twitching excitedly with a shifting sound along the sheets beneath them. Khimi throws the cloth jacket onto the floor and leans on his palms atop the mattress, the motion making the muscles under his thin shirt flex and tense against the fabric. Lumi nearly salivates while his eyes scour every divot of Khimi’s bare arms. He’s… like a god. Can’t look away.

Khimi meets his scanning gaze and Lumi can see then how the man’s cerulean eyes are fully glazed over with lust. Lumi props up on his forearms and grins toothily. “Lord Zeybek, you’ve had such a long journey,” he growls and reaches a cupped hand to clasp his lord’s sturdy neck. He draws them further onto the bed. “You ought’a lie down and let me do the work.”

Khimi flops onto the mattress fully. The warmth of his expression has Lumi swooning. He replies, “Pretty things like you should not have to work a minute.” His head rests on one of the bed’s thin, silk pillow and strokes Lumi’s kneeling thigh.

Lumi purrs at the compliment. “Maybe I could say the same for you.” He places his hands open-palmed on Khimi’s abdomen. His hands move absentmindedly along the ridges of Khimi’s copper skin, tracing unfamiliar musculature. His tufted tail swings behind him when he climbs on top of the taller man and pushes him to lie back flat. Lumi’s arousal, bare under the chiton, rubs back and forth across Khimi’s stomach. His heart thrums in his chest, like an oud, as a cacophony of emotions and sensations crests within him. In aslan tribes, nudity and sex had fewer stigmas than in the Desert Cities, as Lumi had learned. Even as a child, he had witnessed sex between tribe members in communal spaces. He had never had that experience with another, but his memories were so vivid when he thought of that expression of passion. Everything about it had seemed so invigorating and liberating, that he salivates at the thought of knowing that with Khimi. He had dreamed of it.

Lumi’s nails graze forward, fingers curling into the fabric of Khimi’s shirt as he closes the gap between them. His lips crash against Khimi’s once more, fierce and dominate this time. His throbbing hardness brushes again against Khimi’s abdomen and the man’s coarse abdominal hair rubs his thighs to tingling. Groaning, Khimi’s mouth opens slightly, which gives Lumi his chance to press his tongue inside and along the man’s. Their kiss becomes a dance; their salivating brings a wet smack between their mouths. Khimi strokes a hand up the Lumi’s taut legs and up to his rear; he grips there and grinds Lumi against him. The new contact has Lumi arching his back and openly moaning.

Khimi hisses with a physical flinch, and he breaks their kiss, panting. His face is screwed up with discomfort, or so Lumi could guess despite his dizziness. Below him, Khimi’s leg twitches and he kicks off his trousers to release his cock from their confines. Lumi’s eyes widen the moment Khimi’s heavy arousal rests on his soft asscheeks. Panting, he reaches back, caresses Khimi’s hand there, and then spreads his ass, which positions the rigid length to flex at Lumi’s hole. Lumi whimpers as he rocks back and forth more vigorously, wanting to feel that thickness inside. Hasim taught him better, but he can yearn for it, nonetheless.

Suddenly desperate for contact, Lumi sits up, perpendicular on top of Khimi. His hands race to clumsily tug away the cloth belt from around his waist, and with it gone, he rips the chiton over his head and tosses it to the floor. He feels wild with desire and rocks as best he can against Khimi’s pulsing cock behind him. Is this too much? Desperate? Don’t wanna be desperate. Biting his lip in anticipation, he looks down at Khimi beneath him with an insatiable hunger in his eyes. Oh, he likes it. Khimi lifts from the mattress to grab Lumi’s jaw with his free hand and draws him back down for another heavy kiss. Lumi struggles to breathe, their mouths held together.

He pulls away, strings of saliva connecting him to Khimi. Lumi’s skin feels on fire, but it is addicting. “You can t-touch me, y‘know…” Lumi instigates with a shaky growl. He pushes off with his hand from Khimi’s chest and exposes every inch of his nakedness on top of Khimi. “You can fuck me if y‘want t-to,” he continues, his teeth clenched. He takes up Khimi’s free hand from the bed and then he places it gently against his pelvis. When the man had pressed against it on the temple steps, Lumi had almost pulled him down right then. “I want you.”

The swollen tip of his own uncovered hardness drips precum heavily, making a puddle between them on Khimi’s dark skin. In such a vulnerable position, Lumi sits and presents himself for his lover. Too much? Was this too much? He searches desperately to confirm Khimi’s attraction, but the man under him is too quiet and panting and simply looking at him. Does he like it? Does he like me? Lumi starts to feel the consequences of baring it all and an unfamiliar anxiousness wells within him.

Uncertain of Khimi’s interest, Lumi’s resolve crumbles. “I-I’m sorry… I didn’t m-mean—” Lumi murmurs. He attempts to dismount, but Khimi’s hand underneath him holds him in place.

“W-wait!” he whispers hoarsely. His other hand starts to stroke up and down Lumi’s chest. “Let me see you,” he demands. With a grip on Lumi from both ends, Khimi pulls himself up on his elbows and moves Lumi into his lap.

Lumi feels the panicked tears that had welled up in his eyes. He drops his eye contact with Khimi. “What do you want?” he asks, gaze unfocused. He leans forward and reaches for Khimi’s shoulders, digging his nails into the broad plane.

A low sound resonates in Khimi’s throat. Something about it makes Lumi shiver. He replies slowly, “I want to look at you everywhere. You’re beautiful.” Lumi can feel Khimi’s piercing stare along his tan skin, and he fidgets at the attention, dripping cock renewed. Khimi throbs against his ass. “You’re smooth all over,” he comments distantly. He strokes a hand along Lumi’s tender ribs and stomach. “Never touched anyone like this before. So beautiful.”

“B-beautiful is a word for women,” Lumi mumbles with a pout.

“So says you. Regardless, never seen something so precious,” Khimi says reverently. His drifting hand closes around Lumi’s waist. His hot eyes focus on Lumi’s aroused cock, weeping once again. “I could look at you forever, Lumi. Most precious thing I have ever seen.”

Lumi registers when his heart leaps in his chest, tripping over Khimi’s words. He takes hold of Khimi’s hand. “I want you to touch me, K-Khimi,” he stammers, listening to Khimi’s name pass his lips. He guides the hand downwards. “Please,” he begs, sounding helpless.

Khimi steadies himself with an exhale. “I h-had every intention of touching you plenty,” he rasps out. His coarse hand skims down to clutch Lumi’s length, fully enclosed within the grip. The slightest motion or stroke draws out mewls of pleasure. Lumi squeezes his thighs against Khimi’s waist, tempting and wanton. He rests his hands behind him on top of Khimi’s thighs, arching his back. He can feel himself throb and drip precum in the strong grip, especially whenever Khimi adjusts his rhythm. Lumi’s whole body twists to meet Khimi’s touch, as a deep and gentle purring begins in his chest. The rough fingertips work him gently and without pause against Lumi’s pink member.

Khimi sits up slightly, and Lumi watches his lips curl into a provoking grin. “Are you close? I feel you,” he snarls, his strokes quickening. Sweat sticks to Lumi’s his and he worries at his bottom lip with his teeth. He swings his hips in an attempt to meet Khimi’s strokes, desperation climbing. Lumi clutches at Khimi’s chest through his shirt, hands scrambling for purchase as he nears climax. He moans shakily, his thighs twitching over the sides of Khimi’s firm abdomen. His pelvis pitches forward abruptly as cum shoots across Khimi’s shirt. Lumi gasps, his entire body wracked with the intensity, his nails attempting to pierce the cloth, and his tail thumps the mattress. Khimi chuckles softly, staring up at him with lust. Lumi tries to catch his breath, winded and dizzy.

“Good job. Try not to rip this shirt, if you could?” Khimi teases, his eyes motioning to Lumi’s clenched hands.

Lumi licks his lips and meets Khimi’s eyes. He releases his grip and props up his head on the strong shoulders, wrapping his arms around his lover. “I thought I might leave something for you to remember me,” he sighs into Khimi’s ear.

Khimi swipes his tongue across the rim of his teeth and then laughs at the exchange. “You did not think I might have to walk out into the temple with no shirt? Rather, you may as well announce it at mealtime.”

“Nope, didn’t occur to me. Cocky sod!” Lumi purrs more fiercely and pecks Khimi’s cheek.

On his next attempt, Khimi meets Lumi’s lips with his for a languid exchange. Lumi presses his body tight to Khimi’s and against the shirt covered with the freshly spilled seed. His limber tail brushes against Khimi’s swollen and eager cock on a backswing; Lumi feels a string of fluid from it that soaks the coarse fur along his tail. The unfamiliar sensation makes him want to stop and clean himself. He had never considered what it would feel like to have cum in the coarser hair, but he decides to focus on the moment. His fervor renewed after his orgasm, he grabs Khimi’s hand and places it on his waist.

With as much seduction as he can muster, Lumi breaks their kiss to nuzzle Khimi’s jaw and neck. “Now, I get to make you feel good,” he says with a nervous desire.

Khimi raps his fingers against Lumi’s narrow hip and then moves to squeeze the soft mound of his butt. “Do they teach seduction lessons at the Temple of Life?” he teases.

Lumi scoffs. “I’ll take that as a compliment,” he replies. “I dreamed of this from the very moment we met. H-Honestly, I dream of it quite a lot,” he finishes, growing bashful and hiding his face. “So let me be excited.”

“Dreams of me? Us, together?”

“Always, it’s like… you’re all I can think about. Can’t even escape ya for a nap,” Lumi answers. “I think I dreamed of ya before we even met, maybe.”

Khimi raises his brow and rocks against Lumi. “Sounds like an obsession.”

Lumi pulls back to sit in Khimi’s lap and meets the man’s eyes, aetherial blue to smoky cerulean. “Maybe. Now that I know how it feels, though, I think I was right to be obsessed,” he says with a playful tilt of his head. “No stopping it now.”

Khimi dives forward and his teeth clack painfully against Lumi’s as they meet. Lumi giggles as they resume the heated liplock, his mind buzzing and dulled. He feels lost in their passion: he wants nothing more than to stay there forever, naked atop Khimi, indulging in his embrace. Their mouths caress each other’s, their lips pressed together like hands do in righteous prayer. Khimi grabs himself past Lumi and strokes the length of him, more staccato than he used on Lumi. Occasionally he slaps the swollen head against Lumi’s tanned ass. The slick of his precum grows ever larger from the flared head onto Lumi’s backside, the small of his back, and his tail. He’s so big. Lumi writhes his hips against the man in time. The hardness collides with his throbbing hole and rubs the sensitive entrance. Lumi feels a hot want building there with each contact. Inside, need, in me.

Khimi’s legs flinch under Lumi, infrequently and then more often. He groans alongside their kiss and Lumi greedily presses his tongue deeper. He grinds his torso against Khimi’s, his spilled load rubbing between their glistening bodies and into Khimi’s shirt. A shuddering grunt, then, and his lover stills while he falls over the edge. The sudden shot of Khimi’s seed draws lines up his back: repeated thick, warm streams in quick bursts that spread over his tanned skin. Lumi sucks Khimi’s lip between his teeth while he shakes. When they pull back from each other, Lumi drags the point of his rough tongue to trace the curve of Khimi’s lips. The sensation has Khimi’s cock bobbing between his asscheeks.

“You came so much. Really needed that, huh?” Lumi taunts with a lusty smile. “So much. It’d be a shame to let it all go to waste.”

Khimi huffs out hoarsely. “I can always make more,” he replies, canting up his hips. Lumi can feel where his cock reaches the spent load dripping down the skin there—it makes him tingle. “But did you have something in mind?” he asks agreeably. His hands squeeze the top of Lumi’s soft ass, where his fingertips slide through his freshly sprayed cum.

“Even if you make more, I want it,” whines Lumi. “Don’t wanna waste so much milk.” He rubs himself back against Khimi’s thrusts.

Khimi leans back and smiles dazedly when Lumi grabs his wrist and pulls up to his head. When Lumi gets Khimi’s hand up to his mouth, he draws in a long breath and his eyes flutter. He looks back to his lover and asks with his eyes: Khimi nods his assent, unable to pull away his gaze from the Lumi’s panting mouth. Lumi draws in each finger to his outstretched tongue, one after the next. The coarse muscle runs along the length of each digit, collecting every drip. Khimi pulls his hand from the beastkin, who tries to follow it greedily, before he sops up more of the mess along Lumi’s back and presents it anew.

Lumi moans and grinds while Khimi feeds him, unabashedly watching Lumi get his fill. Khimi winces once when Lumi takes a particularly long and stretched-out suck, so he proceeds more gently then on.

“Good?” Khimi asks, and Lumi nods while his mouth is still open. “Have to give you all of it.”

When their routine finishes off the spray from Lumi’s back, he climbs down from Khimi’s lap, trailing his mouth along the chiseled abdomen as he descends. At Khimi’s pelvis, Lumi bends down to lap up the pearly mix there, and then up Khimi’s heavy, flexing cock. Mild fluid spurts out from the tip of it; Lumi makes sure he runs his prickly tongue up and down the entire overwhelming length, for good measure. Tastes so good, better than mine. Smells like him. I wanna smell like him.

 Lumi stops to take in Khimi’s perfection, resting his chin on the bed. His eyes run in little circles to trace all the man’s glossy darkened scars: star-shaped pierce spots, some wide swaths across planes of corded flesh, and Khimi’s facial cuts. Where he thinks himself so unmarked and plain, Lumi finds that he is drawn in by the scars as a map of his dangerous, rugged life that Khimi has led. Gingerly, Lumi reaches his arms up the man’s sides and runs his open palms down the brawny torso, trailing along the slashes and divots he finds.

When he kneels back down into his sitting position, he finds his face is near to Khimi’s groin. Impulsively, he presses his nose fully into the coarse, dark hair there. He takes a deep inhale and lets the musky scent of Khimi’s manhood fill his lungs—sweat, smoke, cum, flesh, something sharp and crisp. An instinctual urge throbs within him. More. Need. Mine. He nuzzles into the crook between the man’s cock and thigh, before his lips part to mouth at the side of the shaft. Khimi groans—the sound drives Lumi further in the act, that he starts to plant slow open kisses on the heavy length. He looks up at Khimi from the position, dragging his lips back and forth over the cock: Khimi’s eyes roll back in response to the intense motion. He clutches the back of Lumi’s head and holds him steady there, while he pinches Lumi’s thick, rounded ears. The tender touch has him purring anew. Emboldened, Lumi flattens his tongue and pulls it up from the base to reach the moist head.

A familiar tremor starts up Khimi’s thigh. Lumi laps against the sensitive tip. Feeling bold, he delicately slides back the man’s thick foreskin to expose the swollen head. He places an open-mouthed kiss onto its moistened slit. He can taste the remnants of spilled seed there. Salty. Thick. Need more of him. He suckles the head before pulling off with an audible pop. He plants wet kisses all along the shaft.Its veins pulsate with his attention.

Lumi releases the hood from his grip and begins to stroke Khimi: his one hand is unable to wrap the shaft entirely. The fingers of his free hand caress Khimi’s sack, gently rolling the eggs. Khimi moans out loud, surprised, when Lumi takes the head past his lips. The warmth has him dripping on Lumi’s tongue. He sits up and wraps his arms around Lumi’s head. He increases the pressure and chases the sensation over his length; Lumi loves it. He wriggles his hips, excited by Khimi’s eagerness. He begins to purr even louder, urging Khimi to continue, and Khimi pushes at the back of his head to guide Lumi’s mouth.

Lumi’s gaze lifts to meet Khimi’s and he draws the cock deeper past his mouth. Khimi groans quietly when it slides past fangs. Lumi bobs up and down, tentatively and then faster; his tail wags behind him, slapping against Khimi’s calves. He forces Khimi’s shaft into his mouth up to the utmost limit of his throat. The fullness and the steady drip of precum feel so satisfying to him. Khimi knots his fingers into Lumi’s hair, groans again. Lumi feels the new pulsations of the cock in his throat, and the jolting leg next to him—when Khimi pulls him up from the position. A shocked expression crosses Lumi’s face before warm seed shoots in ropes into his open mouth and up his cheek. His tail stiffens happily as he bathes in the warm milk. He slurps out loud and returns to sucking at the length. A string of saliva and cum drips from his lips when Lumi gives a coy grin. He slaps the bulky head against his pout before he sucks the last spurts.

“You’re like a kitten with milk,” Khimi groans, sucking his teeth.

Lumi’s hips sway, his eyes stay focused on Khimi’s, “Wouldn’t want to let any go to waste,” he replies, pressing his tongue along the shaft. “I rather like this milk.”

Khimi winches, closing his eyes, “W-was it as delicious as you made it look?” he asks, tousling Lumi’s blond hair.

“Oh, it was more than delicious,” Lumi replies, smiling gleefully. He climbs onto Khimi, pushing him onto his back. “Want a taste?”

Lumi watches for the flicker of realization that dawns in Khimi’s eyes before he presses their lips firmly together. Without any more hesitation, he slips his tongue into Khimi’s mouth, slow and insistent. Their tongues meet, brushing together.

When they pull apart, Lumi locks his gaze onto Khimi, whose brow knits before it smoothens, his touch becoming soft and coaxing. Khimi opens his mouth to speak, but Lumi rolls onto his side, drawing Khimi close. He presses his forehead against Khimi’s, breaking their kiss yet keeping the closeness, savoring each second.

Lumi beams and asks, “How do you taste?” Slowly, he slides his legs between Khimi’s, the warmth of his skin, radiating a comforting heat.

“Saltier than I was expecting,” Khimi replies bluntly, a hint of surprise lickering in his eyes. “I’ve never tasted it before,” he says with a grimace, the corners of his mouth tugging downward.

“You mean to tell me you were never curious enough?” Lumi asks, tilting his head curiously.

“I have thought about it, but have always stopped myself before going through with it…”

Lumi purses his lips. “It’s a shame. I like the salty taste,” he replies in a lively tone. “At least you don’t gotta worry about any of it going to waste.” He snuggles his cheek against Khimi’s chest. “I like your fat balls too.”

Khimi bites his lip. He caresses Lumi’s leg with his. “I wanted to discuss something with you. It can be later, if you’d like.”

Lumi places his lips against Khimi’s bare chest. “Whatcha wanna talk ‘bout?”

“It’s going to seem really sudden,” Khimi mutters as his fingers tap out a slow rhythm along the delicate curves of Lumi’s ribs. “You should come to Rhaz,” he says bluntly. “I think that it would be better for both of us.”

“Really?!” Lumi shouts, unable to contain his excitement. Question after question leaps to the front of his mind: where am I gonna live? What’s it like in Rhaz? Is the food good? The questions pour out of him. “I thought you thought I was odd? I thought you didn’t like me? Where am I going to live? Do I need to work?”

“Well, you are odd,” Khimi replies solemnly, his gaze steady yet soft. But as soon as he sees the frown crossing Lumi’s lips, a hint of panic flares in his eyes. “Don’t take that the wrong way, Irealized I was wrong about you. Between the letters, I’ve had time to think.” He pauses, eyes searching Lumi’s as if hoping to convey everything his words can’t. “I judged you too quickly,” he admits, his tone bordering on a confession. “But you told me what you believe to be true, and we can find out together.”

Lumi places his head back against Khimi’s chest. “This is such a relief. I think I need to leave here soon anyway. After these past few months, it is obvious this place isn’t for me.”

Khimi huffs. “Well, good riddance, you can share my home, Lumi. You can do whatever you like, so long as you don’t get into too much trouble,” he begins before he presses his soft lips against Lumi’s brow. “I know I must sound like the odd one now, asking you to live with me so soon.”

Lumi purrs, his chest vibrating gently against Khimi. “As long as you don’t toss me out…”

Khimi scoffs. “I can’t imagine that,” he says and kisses the top of Lumi’s head. “Things will work out.”

Lumi, unsure of himself, sits up suddenly. “I didn’t think they would ever ask me to leave the temple, but here we are,” he confesses, anguish in his tone. “Does that change your decision?”

“Is it something you did?” Khimi asks, his brow creasing. “I’ve heard something of your troubles here.

“Something I’ve said, or shouldn’t have said,” Lumi begins, then rolls onto his back. “All I did was speak my truth, and now I’ll be punished for it. It feels like… my whole life has been nothing but punishment.”

Khimi leans over Lumi. “Regardless, my question remains the same.” His lips press against Lumi’s. “I can give you a new home, if you’d like?” He sounds almost unsure of his question. His fingertips brush across the scars on the bridge of Lumi’s nose.

“A new home?” Lumi asks himself.

He turns away from Khimi. It’s not going to work… he’ll grow sick of me.

He glances at the circular window, its curtains drawn across it. “What happens when something goes wrong, or you grow tired of me, or you replace me,” he whines as his eyes fill with tears.

Khimi sighs. “Calm down. I am not so quick to give up on something,” he whispers and presses his cheek against Lumi’s soft blond hair.

“You can’t,” Lumi mumbles, pulling himself against Khimi, his fingers tracing along his muscles. “You’ll have to keep me forever.” He chokes out a laugh. “Forever,” he sounds out slowly.

“Forever is a long time,” Khimi replies, squeezing Lumi against himself. He pushes Lumi’s head against his chest.

Lumi purrs fiercely into Khimi’s renewed embrace. “I know that. I still mean it.”

***

After hours of quiet slumber, Lumi rouses beside Khimi. Pulling himself from beneath Khimi’s arms, he slips from the bed. I guess I should have told someone I wasn’t going to show up today—though it’s not like it matters much anyway. Not anymore. He looks over Khimi in the bed, tracking his slow and steady breathing. Still naked from their afternoon, he shivers uncontrollably in the cold of the desert night as he crosses the room. A pile of ironwood logs rests beside a large copper tub. He quietly places the logs beneath the tub in the corner of the room. Lumi closes his eyes a moment, whispers an incantation, and the pieces burst into flames.

He scoots closer to it on the floor, warming his hands and feet with the newly-ignited wood. The desert chill blows through the circular window, making the curtains shimmer, their golden threads catching the light of the fire. The tiles surrounding the fire slowly warm while the flame expands. Lumi stretches, pressing his hands against his back and arching it behind him. When his head flips upside down, he sees Khimi ambling up behind him from the bed, with its blanket draped across his shoulders. Lumi flips back up at the welcome surprise; when he rights himself, he notices Khimi behind him, staring into the flames. He’s really quiet for being as big as he is. Usually, Lumi can pick up on the softest of sounds, yet he must have been too distracted to hear Khimi stir.

Khimi scratches the scar on his cheek. “Looks to be enough space for two,” he says, his eyes trained on the gleaming surface of the tub.

“Yah, but it’ll be a while still before it’s hot enough to use,” Lumi replies softly, eyeing Khimi’s muscular features. He blushes when Khimi catches at him.

Khimi smirks. “Like what you see, kitten?” he asks with a cocked brow.

Lumi rolls his eyes. “Y-yeah, what about it?” He reaches his hand up to grasp Khimi’s. “You should know, you’re the only person I’ve let call me that.”

“That so?” Khimi asks, taking Lumi’s hand in his own and sitting beside him on the cold stone floor. He sucks his teeth the second his bare skin touches the frigid tile. “It’s an honor. Frankly, I feel I have to call you ‘kitten’. You have that same erratic energy. The way you went after that milk…”

“You’re joking, right?” Lumi’s face wrinkles. “I’ve almost gouged out the old cook’s eye for calling me that. So consider yourself lucky,” he whispers. He tightens the blanket around Khimi, then rubs his head against the broad shoulder.

“I feel lucky already,” Khimi laughs. He places his free hand on Lumi’s head. “On the topic, did you purr earlier?” he asks, gently stroking Lumi’s hair.

Lumi chuckles sheepishly. “Most ikati^[4] can purr. It’s unconscious. I don’t purr for just anyone, though!” He keeps his eyes on the flickering flames beneath the copper tub. “Now that you mention it, I can’t remember the last time I purred. Since when I first came to the temple?”

Khimi hums, a sly edge to his tone. “Interesting that you react that way with me. I heard you purr quite a bit.” He lowers his chin, pressing it gently against Lumi’s head.

“W-well, today has been… something else,” Lumi croaks, placing his hand on Khimi’s thigh. “It’s felt hazy, like a dream!”

Khimi leans in, his lips brushing softly against Lumi’s golden mane. “Then I’m glad I brightened your day,” he whispers, his fingers running along the length of Lumi’s arm.

Lumi’s hair stands on end at the touch, his mind racing through all the words unspoken.

Khimi wraps his arm around Lumi’s far shoulder and pulls him closer. “Would you mind if I speed up this process?” he asks. “I’m beginning to feel impatient.”

Lumi turns and sees Khimi’s eyes fixed on the flame. “We can’t make a bonfire here, Khimi. Nina would never forgive me if I burned down the Temple.”

“Nothing so dangerous,” he replies quietly.

Lumi’s heart races, every beat echoing in Khimi’s hold. Khimi lifts his hand, palm open toward the copper tub. He utters a low incantation in a language Lumi doesn’t recognize. The firelight dances in Khimi’s eyes, reflecting the intensity.

Lumi leans forward to watch the flames respond. They surge along with Khimi’s intention, flaring brilliantly, and the water in the tub begins to hiss and steam. Then, as quickly as it began, Khimi’s incantation ceases. He lowers his hand, the flames gutter down as though they had never been subjugated to his will.

 “You’re a mage,” Lumi says in awe.

Khimi stares at the steam newly forming above the tub. “Not a mage… it’s only a parlor trick I picked up,” he offers innocently. He brushes his hand against the sandstone floor, bits of dust stirring at his charged touch.

Lumi stands, the blanket cast aside. “I haven’t seen much magick. There’s the restorative magick they use,” he says excitedly, “and some traveling clerics know other magicks… Not that they taught it here. I saw one shoot bright lights from his hands, and another one made plants grow with a thought.” He walks over to the tub, dipping his hand in the warm water, splashing it back and forth.

“Hot enough for you?” Khimi asks, his voice quiet and thoughtful.

Lumi glances back, his tail shaking behind him. “Plenty! That trick will see use in the future, I’m certain!” he exclaims, flashing his teeth with a wide grin. “I know some magick, but I was told I shouldn’t use it. Besides, it’s nothing like yours.” He places his hands on either side of the tub and leaps into the steaming water. With a look back at Khimi, he asks, “Are you gonna join?” and dips below the foamy water.

Lumi slowly rises above the rim of the tub; he shakes his head and his wet hair splashes water across the sandstone. He sets his eyes on Khimi, who stands from the floor, leaves behind the blanket. Cautiously, he climbs into the bath. Lumi smirks beneath the water, giddy and shy, as he takes in the sight of Khimi’s scarred, muscular form. He’s got so many scars. Khimi leans back into the tub and closes his eyes. After a moment, he opens one and laughs to see Lumi’s boring holes through him.

“Do you have to stare?”

“I do,” Lumi whispers and leans forward. “Have you ever considered healing them?” he asks while he moves tauntingly across the tub and into Khimi’s lap.

Khimi looks pensively at Lumi, his hand meeting Lumi’s hip and sliding across it. “At times. I like my scars. They remind me of my past. Battles and brushes with death. Though it must be nice,” Khimi murmurs. His hand feels further down Lumi’s side, brushing the back of his thigh. The sensation startles Lumi from his heady trance and he flinches to pull tighter against himself.

A clever grin spreads across his face. “What do you mean?” Lumi replies with a laugh and he locks his ankles under Khimi’s knees.

“You’re so soft and…” Khimi begins, clearing his throat. He continues to take in Lumi’s form.

Lumi bites his lip. “And?”

“Soft and perfect—not a mark on you,” Khimi responds, his eyes scouring Lumi’s smaller body.

Lumi curls up against the intense stare and huffs. “Well…” he says, blushing brightly. “Th-thank you. But that’s not true!” He sits up from Khimi’s thighs, water sloshing. “I do have scars, right here.” He taps the marks that cross the bridge of his nose. “In our tribe, each family has different markings they make on the kids. My father made these on me,” he explains, running his fingertips over the rougher patch of skin. “I don’t remember getting them, but I’ve always had them.”

“Looks painful,” Khimi whispers while he places a hand on Lumi’s cheek, his thumb brushing gently across the two lines. “They do them so young that you don’t remember when they happened?”

“I couldn’t remember it if I tried, honest,” Lumi replies, placing his hand over Khimi’s. “So then, why so many brushes with death?” he asks and folds his fingers over Khimi’s, holding them against his cheek. “I’m surprised Lord Zeybek would have lived so dangerously.”

Khimi assesses his own scarred body. “Why not?”

Lumi pulls himself against Khimi, pressing his embrace. “Just curious,” he whispers, nudging his face from side to side against Khimi’s chest, teasing his nipples with his soft lips. His body trembles. These past months, this was all he could think of—to be alone with Khimi, share stories and learn about each other. The heat of the tub makes him melt against the broad torso.

“Hmm. I can’t r-recall every one of them,” Khimi offers. Lumi notices a blush to his face as he slides his body seducingly against his lover’s chest. Khimi leans back in the copper tub slightly, Lumi’s weight pressed against him. “Some were from direct combat, and then I was quite adventurous as a boy,” he adds, tilting his head back in thought.

“Adventurous?” Lumi asks, his breath gently caressing Khimi’s chest. “Sexual-like?” he gasps.

Khimi coughs. “No, I was fairly tame in that field.”

Lumi chuckles, his wet hair laying flat against Khimi’s chest. “Go on.”

“I always had a knack for finding trouble,” Khimi says, “much to my mother’s frustration—and Rashid.” A laugh bubbles up as he glances at Lumi, the memory clearly vivid in his eyes. He gestures then to a scar running along his arm. “This one? That’s from when I fell off my horse in Sidi.” He leans back, head tilted. “My father and I had a nasty arguement that day. Tempers flared, and before I knew it, I was rushing to get away. I took off for the coast. I thought I’d prove a point—or maybe just outrun my father’s fury.” His lips quirk with regret and perhaps a bit of amusement. “I pushed the horse too hard, tried to make it jump a fence it had no business clearing. Poor thing threw me, and the next thing I knew, my arm was a mangled mess. Bone sticking through and all.” His nose pinches at the recollection. “Fortunately, I wasn’t too far from the city. A cleric patched me up before I bled to death.”

Lumi closes his eyes, the warmth from the tub enticing him into a reflective state. “Are many of your scars gifts from your father?” he asks quietly.

Khimi’s hand finds its way to stroke Lumi’s damp hair. “A fair few of them,” he replies with a wince, “but just as many are the results of fights with sellswords and bandits.” His fingers move to Lumi’s thick, rounded ears to pinch the cartilage as he massages with his thumb. “I spent some time away from my family.”

Lumi whimpers softly, his legs tensing at Khimi’s explorations. “S-so then your sword you carry around isn’t just a prop?” he asks tauntingly, placing his lips against Khimi’s chest. “Maybe I should have guessed, since I know all about your other sword,” Lumi intimates in a smooth whisper, meeting Khimi’s eyes. He does his best to communicate the urgency he feels with only his expression.

Khimi’s breath catches, his pupils dilating as the meaning behind Lumi’s touch and words sink in.

“This,” Lumi sighs out as he reaches between them, his fingers gently coaxing Khimi’s girth. He feels when his fingertips brush over the covered head and thick veins.

He presses his lips against Khimi’s throat. I want him. Inside of me. Khimi tilts back his head and his neck flexes against the rolled edge of the copper tub. Lumi’s prickly tongue strokes against the vein pulsing in Khimi’s neck, lapping against his copper skin there.

Khimi’s heartbeat is audible to Lumi just from their proximity. The low thrumming is mesmerizing.

“If I wasn’t sure before, I am certain now—you aren’t an acolyt-te,” Khimi stutters, and he sucks his teeth at Lumi’s attentions. “Hells, help me, your tongue.”

Lumi growls. “You can pretend I’m not an acolyte if it makes it easier,” he whispers seductively, his hand moving slowly from the resistance from the water, his grip tightening on Khimi’s shaft.

Gods, it’s so big, he thinks, becoming more ravenous by the moment. He had considered what his mate’s body would look like. If he were a beastkin, elf, human or something else. But as his fingers tense around Khimi, he cannot help but smile to himself. I wonder what he feels like inside…? He’d only ever known the comforts of his own fingers, but with the promise of feeling so full, his ache grows sharper.

“The gods must really be lookin’ out for me… I wasn’t expecting anything of this size,” He kisses Khimi’s neck, his hand stroking the length beneath him. “You must be…” His voice trails as he loses his focus.

“Must be what?” Khimi hisses through his teeth at Lumi’s squeeze.

“A gift from the gods!” Lumi grins. “It’s huge!” he exclaims happily, his cheek against Khimi’s shoulder. His hand moves deftly along his cock, his fingertips tracing the pulsing veins; the water forcing him to slow his pace.

Khimi moves his arms to the sides of the tub and spreads his legs with desire. “I am certainly glad it gets your approval,” he growls, glancing down at Lumi with a flash of his teeth. “I have seen a few cocks in my life, but I never considered myself that much larger… Maybe we should return to the bed.” His breath hikes when his length arches up involuntarily between Lumi’s cheeks.

Lumi nuzzles against Khimi’s chin. “But the water is so warm,” he drawls between kisses. “You should just relax, after your long journey.”

Khimi massages his brow. “You feel incredible… if we keep on, I think I won’t be able to s-stop myself—I don’t know how I feel about—” he stutters with the sensation of the bulky head pressing between Lumi’s asscheeks. “Having s-sex in the temple, would that not be… Sacrilegious?”

Lumi flinches and deflates. He pushes himself back from Khimi to look at him directly. “We don’t have to have sex,” he whispers. “I’m certain many have had s-sex in the temple, though,” he adds in a pleading voice. He turns his cheek in embarrassment, “I don’t want to rush anything, I—”

Khimi sits up fast with concern, and the sudden movement splashes water over the sides of the tub. “You misunderstand my meaning,” he replies in a rush. “I want to have sex with you, believe me. There is nothing I would rather do than pin you down on that bed and…”

Color rises in Lumi’s cheeks. “And fuck me with your massive cock?” he asks, positioning himself over Khimi’s body once more.

Khimi covers his mouth to hide his expression. “I would have used… kinder words,” he replies. His free hand slides along the length of Lumi’s body. Lumi tracks as the fingers map every inch of skin, before there is a pause at the base of the tail. When Khimi grips it, Lumi begins to purr once more. “This is rare?” Khimi teases along with his hands.

“I told you,” Lumi whispers, reaching beneath him to resume stroking off Khimi. “Today was a good day,” he grumbles through clenched teeth.

Khimi narrows his eyes in amusement. “How do I make it better?” he asks, thumbing the base of Lumi’s tail.

Lumi trembles at Khimi’s touch. “Let me look again,” he instructs, blushing at his demand.

“Is that all? My cock?”

Lumi nods a dozen times.

“If it makes you that happy just to see me hard for you…” Khimi replies mockingly.

Khimi removes his hands from Lumi to brace himself with the rim of the tub. Lumi retreats back and off of his lap. Water splashes across the floor, the fire snapping at the spill-over. Khimi propels himself up from the steaming water before Lumi, who watches his hardened cock nod in anticipation, and sits balanced on the edge.

Lumi stares at his size, instantly aroused. “That does make it better,” he croaks. He melts against the back of the copper tub, hiding his lips beneath the steam and murky water. Not only is the man absolutely gorgeous in Lumi’s eyes, but he is gifted no less. Every part of Lumi hungers to touch, to feel. He wants to familiarize himself with every bit, taste every inch.

With an arm snaked around the back of Khimi’s thigh, Lumi draws himself closer, he grips the back of Khimi’s thighs as he positions himself on his knees before him. Admiration fills him at the sight of Khimi’s virility, of the beautiful, rugged body before him. Admiration fills him at the sight of Khimi’s virility, of the beautiful, rugged body before him. Khimi’s cock throbs, seeming to Lumi that it badly needed release. So hard…

Lumi straightens himself on his knees and places a kiss to Khimi’s inner thigh. He looks up through his lashes with hungry eyes. His hand moves swiftly to circle the base of Khimi’s cock, yet unable to wrap around its entirety. Steadily, he draws the tip to his lips, opens them slightly, and takes the hooded tip into his mouth. Lumi looks up, locking his eyes with Khimi. His body shivers with desire. Without even touching himself, Lumi feels on the edge of orgasm.

He slowly works the tip further into his mouth but gags slightly as he takes it. Lumi wants everything he can get from Khimi, more than he can reasonably bear. He swirls and swishes his tongue around the tip as he strokes the shaft. With eager hands, he pulls against the skin to expose the swollen head. Then when Khimi’s grip tightens in his hair to press his head aggressivley down his length, Lumi moans and his vision blurs.

Lumi takes a moment to focus his vision upward. The expression on Khimi’s face, his head tilted back in ecstasy, fills him with warmth. Khimi bucks his hips and pushes his cock deeper into Lumi’s mouth; it nears the back of his throat. Desperate to please, Lumi angles his head back, allowing Khimi full access. The girth of him jamming into Lumi’s soft palate burns, but he wants more still. Come for me. It’s mine. The desire for it feels already familiar to him.

His fingernails scrape across Khimi’s muscular buttocks and Khimi thrusts against Lumi’s soft lips to the base. His cock pumps in and out rapidly. He’ll break my jaw like this. Lumi’s prickly tongue brushes against the heavy vein along the base. A rumbling groan erupts from Khimi, and he draws back his hips, his moist cockhead against Lumi’s lips. Lumi looks up at him with pleading eyes: he wants nothing more than to taste Khimi and finish what he started.

“Is this ok?” Lumi pants, his lips brushing against Khimi’s cock.

Khimi groans at the light touch. He gently lifts Lumi’s chin, his gaze softening with genuine appreciation. “Absolutely perfect. I am so close.”

“You could still fuck me, if you reconsidered. I have somewhere else where I’d be happy to take your seed.” His flushed skin darkens deeper, his lust apparent.

“I want to s-savor this,” Khimi groans, flinching when Lumi licks a hungry stripe along the length of his shaft. “When we get back to Rhaz… Trust me, I’ll make sure to fill you up.”

Lumi’s purrs again as Khimi’s words wash over him. His tongue flicks faster against the slit of Khimi’s throbbing cock, relishing in the taste of his precum. With a moan held back between clenched teeth, Khimi arches his hips and Lumi takes him back into his throat. The combination of saliva and precum drips in a heady stream from Lumi’s lips. His fingers grip Khimi’s firm ass. The intense size of Khimi’s cock sends tingles through Lumi’s jaw, but he doesn’t dare slow down. The wet sound of his suckling, added with the heavy slap of Khimi’s balls against his chin, echoes dully in the room.

“L-Lumi,” Khimi stammers. His thighs shake and tense. “I’m close. Lumi?”

Khimi glances through narrowed eyes at Lumi; Lumi’s fingertips hold faster to the meaty ass in reply. I want all of him. Lumi greedily presses himself harder against Khimi’s cock as Khimi’s hands dig into his hair; warm, thick seed gushes into Lumi’s mouth. In a moment of bliss, Khimi tugs against Lumi’s hair, his cock thrusting deeper into Lumi’s throat. Unable to manage the size, Lumi chokes suddenly, his sharp fangs scraping against the sensitive skin. Khimi holds Lumi’s head between both his hands and allows Lumi to suck at him enthusiastically, his lips pressed securely to his groin.

Whatever words Khimi says then are lost—Lumi hears only a dull throb. His tongue laps against the cock, his lips nearly flush with the base. His jaw aches, the corner of his lips hurt. To him, none of that matters. He’s delicious. Tastes like mine. He withdraws the cock from his throat, then mouth, and Khimi releases his grip. A stream of saliva and ejaculate trail from Lumi’s plump lips.

Khimi’s eyes flutter. “I am excited for Rhaz,” he croaks. His lips curve into a wide, gleeful grin as he watches Lumi eagerly licking up the last bit of cum from his length. “Where is this reaction from?”

Lumi doesn’t break focus from servicing him. “What do you mean?” he asks between amorous licks along Khimi’s shaft.

“Are you always so ferocious?”

Lumi laughs, his eyes flicking up to Khimi. “You’re the first person I could express it with… Usually, I touch myself… a lot,” he replies, his tone teasing. “You awakened something in me.”

Khimi lowers himself back into the copper tub. He laughs when Lumi begins to lick the remains from his fingers. “Glad I could bring that out in you. C’mere,” he murmurs, leaning back against the tub wall.

Lumi’s tail rattles through the water. “I hope you enjoyed it?” he asks and draws himself back into Khimi’s lap, shivering suddenly.

“Of course I enjoyed it. I’ve never experienced anything quite like it, truth be told,” Khimi mutters, pulling Lumi against himself. “Let me heat the tub again.”

Lumi looks up and sounds a soft hum. “You’ve never been with anyone before me either?” he asks as he leans back on Khimi’s chest.

Once again Khimi whispers the incantation: steam begins to trail across the top of the water’s surface, as the heat permeates the tepid water.

Khimi moves his hands along Lumi’s chest to wrap him in an embrace. “There have been people for whom I felt attraction. There was a serving hand and a stable boy in my family home, when I was younger, though nothing ever came of that. As a mercenary, I had offers to spend the night with many people… but I admit I never have.” Khimi falls silent for a moment. “Do I seem to be lacking experience…?”

“Not at all,” Lumi replies, his hands moving over Khimi’s. “Honestly, it makes me happy knowing I am not the only one without. I was worried I would be a disappointment,” he sighs with relief. He lays his head back, closing his eyes while Khimi’s arms wrap around him.

Khimi leans in and presses a soft kiss between Lumi’s rounded ears. “I hope this does not offend,” he says, attempting playfulness, “but it seemed to me you knew exactly what to do.”

“I’m just horny!” Lumi blurts, his cheeks flushing as he claps his palms over his face. “I have always had these… intense dreams—and I have to wake up and, well, relieve myself before I can sleep again.” His voice lowers, muffled behind his hands. “Besides, I could say the same of you!”

Khimi chuckles, his fingers idly tracing along the shell of Lumi’s ear. “I read some.”

“Reading, huh?” Lumi teases, peering at him through his fingers.

“A friend lent me a book,” Khimi murmurs.

“A friend! You have to show me sometime,” Lumi replies with grin, before he s snuggles up into him.

“Not that I doubt you… but how do you know so much?” Khimi questions tentatively.

Lumi shakes his head gently. “Where I grew up, aslan weren’t very shy about these kinds of things. Sometimes they would have sex in open areas or during celebrations. I never participated, but you can learn a lot from watching. But it seems that in other places… sex is more private or behind closed doors only.”

Khimi clicks his tongue. “Not everything needs to happen only behind closed doors, I think.”

“Oh,” Lumi breathes, sitting up in surprise.

“We can manage something outside the bedroom,” Khimi whispers, his chin grazing through Lumi’s hair.

Lumi melts at Khimi’s words. “Yes… please,” he murmurs, his voice trailing off.

He listens to Khimi’s quiet breaths and closes his eyes. His thoughts drift back to the last time he had rested close enough to someone to hear their breathing. It must have been back when he was with his tribe. He racks his brain, only to realize he’d never experienced such a sensation before. Why does he feel so familiar? With his head resting against Khimi’s chest, he feels himself slipping in and out of consciousness, the warmth of Khimi’s breath against his hair gently lulling him to sleep.

The Coast

---

The sun shines into the guest bedchamber through a circular window, cut into the stone wall. It is the first thing Lumi sees upon opening his eyes; outside, the temple sparrows twitter. He blinks twice and lets his eyes adjust to the direct light. Rolling over on the bed, he finds himself faced with Khimi’s steely blue eyes. He looks at Lumi with a tender, wry expression. Lumi feels himself start to blush: his mind cannot help but return to the previous night’s events. He cannot remember walking to bed from the bath. Something giddy bubbles inside him, just below the surface, and the sensation frightens him. He knows how fleeting and unsteady such happiness can be.

“Good morning,” Khimi whispers.

Lumi feels studied. He attempts to rein in his vague anxiety.He places a hand on Khimi’s chest. “Did you carry me to bed?” he asks, yawning. Innocently, he curls a leg between Khimi’s and draws them closer together.

Khimi clears his throat. “We had a long day. I thought it best not to wake you,” he replies, setting his hand on Lumi’s waist. “I want you with me when I talk to Saint Nina.”

Oh, right. Nina. Lumi groans. The prospect of discussing the future with her makes him want to hide away. He pulls a pillow on top of his head, for some slight relief.

“Give me a moment.” he whines, muffled by the cover. “I just woke up—and you’re already asking me to have life-changing conversations!”

Khimi pulls closer to him and squeezes Lumi’s leg between his thick thighs. “Sorry to catch you off guard.” The hand at his waist moves up to stroke his side comfortingly. “I would love to spend a week with you like this, or longer, with nothing but each other; but my schedule has us at the temple only a few days.”

“What?!” Lumi yelps. He throws off the pillow. “We can’t leave this soon! I’m not ready,” he pouts. “Stay longer? Or I could play stowaway in your wagon!”

“I think it would be immediately obvious where you had gone,” Khimi says bluntly. “Even more, Saint Nina is a business associate: I value our working relationship, and I do not want it to come between you and me. Do you think she will refuse you?”

Lumi doesn’t know what he thinks. “Just another day or two?” Lumi asks, grabbing Khimi’s other hand and peering into his eyes with his best begging gleam. “I only want to pretend like this for a little longer,” he whispers, “because I don’t know if it will upset Nina, but…”

Khimi squeezes Lumi’s hand back. “I suppose another day would be fine,” he offers.

Lumi smiles at him, despite the anxiety he feels below the surface. He extricates himself from his lover and from the bed to push onto his knees. “Good! Why rush? You’re acting like you’re so ready to leave!” He slips off the bed and onto the tile floor.

He starts looking around for his discarded clothing and Khimi watches him in turn. “Perhaps you do not realize how much more freedom we can have when we are together in Rhaz.”

“Oh. Alright!” Lumi chirps, blushing again. He finds his chiton on the floor and inspects it for dirt. Confirming it unsoiled, he pulls it over his head and shifts it into place. He bounces and twists animatedly; Khimi’s gaze follows him through the routine. Lumi giggles. “And I thought I was the horny one,” he scoffs. He brushes his hands down the wrinkled linen, in an attempt to lay it flat.

“Rather, I am glad you are as horny as I am,” Khimi shrugs playfully. “If you think about it, the sooner we get to Rhaz, the sooner we get to continue… exploring one another.”

Lumi turns away, hiding his sudden arousal, though he does need to find his caligae. “There you go bein’ forward again.”

 “Do you disapprove?”

He turns back to face Khimi, unlaced sandal in hand. “Disapprove? As if!” Lumi roars happily. “I’m glad that you’re pushing for our, uh, f-friendship-thing.”

“A ‘friendship-thing’? Is that all we are, after last night?” Khimi questions with a smirk. He stands from the bed and turns his back to Lumi.

Lumi’s tail shakes behind him, wrapping around his thigh. “A-are we in a relationship? I wanted to say that, but I wouldn’t force you,” he replies while he watches Khimi finish adjusting his kaftan.

“You can say ‘relationship’,” Khimi replies in a plain tone without turning back to Lumi. He slips into his pants.

Lumi nods, feeling overwhelmed. “I’ll remember that.”

He glances out the window and tries to gauge the hour. The sparrows gathered along the window ledge. They chirp intermittently, pecking the cracks between the dense, yellowed stone bricks for worms or beetles. An older acolyte enters the courtyard below their room, breadcrumbs in hand. She scatters it across the sandy path and the flock descends from the window to collect their meal. Will I miss this place?

In his heart, Lumi knows this place could not be his home for much longer. The gods of life are not his gods and never had been; his gods beckon him elsewhere. He bends over and lays his cheek against the sunny windowsill, trying to dull his worries around the important conversation in his near future. From the courtyard, the acolyte looks up and notices him; a brief smile crosses her shrouded face, and then she continues along the path and out of sight.

Warm arms unexpectedly wrap around his torso; Khimi pulls him against his broad chest. “Ready to start the day?” he asks.

Lumi maintains his silence. A mix of emotions surges through him while he sinks into the embrace

“Kitten?”

He turns up to look at Khimi, then. “Just a couple more days,” he says, sitting fully in the window port supported by Khimi’s forearms. “That’s all I need. Please… I know I can’t stay, but this is the happiest I have been here in a long time. I want to remember it like this. And then we can go together to talk to Nina—in a few days!”

“A few days,” Khimi repeats, taking Lumi’s hand. “Will you show me around?”

“Khimi, I still have my chores here. Do you want to tag along? I can show you what the temple is like during the day now!”

They step back together from the window port and depart the small room. Lumi takes a look back at the messy bed and copper tub. Will I ever come back here?

***

The sun casts a warm glow on the canyon walls as it slips downward. Palm fronds sway against the gusts from the coast. From the temple, streams of water trickle down the sides of the canyon as they follow the aqueducts to the shore.

Lumi and Khimi descend the final stair on the path leading from the building to the base of the canyon; Lumi takes Khimi’s hand in his and spins with it, flashing a bright smile up at him. Their day had been like any other this week: they each had their duties, between the caravan and the temple, filled with tedium. It was the knowledge that he would see Khimi when they were through which madthe hours fly.

At the canyon floor, the sand beneath Lumi’s bare feet is softer than that around the temple. During a storm, the tide would rise and the waves would touch the canyon walls to create the soft sand. At least, that was how Nina had once explained it to him.

“You are very chipper today,” Khimi murmurs appraisingly. Lumi glances back to see him eyeing their surroundings.

He rocks on his heels and leans back to rest against Khimi, letting his weight sink into the man’s sturdy frame. “Of course I am: I get to see you every day,” he admits. “When you were first here, I felt like I had no time to show you anything.” Khimi smiles down at him and he smiles back. “Now I wanted to show you somewhere special.”

“Deeper in the canyon?”

“Be patient!” Lumi shushes, twisting back around and rushing through the sandy canyon. “It’ll be worth it!”

Lumi pulls Khimi with all his might, but it affects their pace little. Khimi humors him nonetheless. His giddy laughter echoes through the canyon while he runs them to their destination. He looks back to check Khimi’s mood. He’s so mature. I want to make him smile.

The path gradually expands and the sunset dims the canyon around them. Rounding a bend, their view opens wide to Lumi’s favorite scene here: the coastline. The yellow sand, sparkling as far as sight allows on either side, and the Great Expanse, stretching out forever.

All is bathed in orange glow, the shore and the expanse of water. From his first time at the temple, this spot would always remind Lumi of his childhood. Despite so many hard memories, he could find comfort in beauty here, like the beaches of the Dolman coast. While the water is not as brilliant blue as in Dolmas, the view is just as beautiful.

“It’s very beautiful,” Khimi mutters. He grips Lumi’s hand tighter.

“Agreed, ” Lumi replies, already walking forward through soft sand towards the lapping sea. The sounds of the coast are so clear to him: the waves against the shore, the breeze through the canyon, and the sandpipers that scratch in the sand. “It’s always real peaceful here,” he continues, his hand still joined with Khimi’s. “Ever since they first brought me to the temple, I would come here and clear my head.”

There is a pause between them before Khimi releases Lumi’s hand. “I heard you had issues with other acolytes here… was that always the case?” He shoots the aslan a serious face.

Lumi tries to take his cue and reply sincerely. He approaches the edge of the water. “I never really fit in here, from the first moment. I wondered if that was just the way things are outside the aslan tribes, but even the other beastkin didn’t like me much. It only got worse over time,” he whispers, “and I thought that–well, I don’t know what I thought. Everything in my head was so mixed up back then. I hoped, though, that things would change or that people might get used to me. It never happened. They would push me or say nasty things to me, specifically to make me angry. One time, I mentioned to the other acolytes that I spoke to the gods… everyone started to call me a liar. Saint Nina separated me from the others, and things calmed down, but they never improved”

“Then is it true that you—no, never mind,” Khimi says under his breath.

“Say it.”

Khimi sighs. He steps forward beside Lumi. “I cut my question short, because the answer matters little to me. Regardless, Rashid told me he heard the acolytes discussing your violent tendencies.”

“I guess it’s true,” Lumi whispers, “there were some incidents before. Like, I didn’t even know this older cleric, but he kept calling me a demi-human. At the time, I didn’t know what it meant or that it was an insult. When a guest finally told me what he meant, I tried to brush it off… but I couldn’t get it off my mind, and I j-just got so angry.”

“What did you do?”

Lumi groans. He plops down to the sand beneath him and hides his face behind his hands. “Are you sure? I worry it’ll make you think twice about bringing me to Rhaz.”

Khimi slowly lowers himself beside Lumi, then slides off his silk babouches. “We have all done things we regret,” he grunts, “I imagine I have stories that would change your view of me.”

“I pushed him down the stairs,” Lumi whispers through his fingers. He pulls his hands away from his face and buries them in the sand. “The big ones. I confronted him about it in front of the temple entrance, and he wouldn’t apologize, and everything he said… I just couldn’t take it anymore.”

Khimi stays quiet until the story finishes, but Lumi thinks he caught an amused grin playing at his lips. “Did he survive, then?”

“Barely,” Lumi groans, “and not if it weren’t for Amani. I could have killed him… and everyone knew it. Things got worse after that. There were rumors I was a rabid monster or something. People started accusing Saint Nina of being partial to me, which made me angrier. She told me that the acolyte was wrong for what he did, but my actions made it so he could not be criticized. She would say over and over how I needed to learn control, but it has always been so hard. I got over people insulting me, for the most part, but now what gets to me are comments and rumors about Nina.”

“Is it still like that?” Khimi asks. He claps the satiny shoes together. “You feel that angry?”

“It sneaks up on me all the time,” Lumi admits. He brings his knees up to his chest. “The anger just comes to me so quick… My mind goes blank and everything flashes white.”

“That feeling is not uncommon, Lumi,” Khimi responds. “There are times when I find myself blind with rage.” He reaches up to thumb over Lumi’s shoulder. “Tell me more. When else did you feel like that?”

Lumi’s words come quickly, running together, as he asks, “Are ya sure? It’s okay?”

“I think I ought to know the kind of menace I plan to bring home with me.” He leans closer to Lumi; his fingers lift from Lumi’s shoulder to his chin and guide him to an intense stare. “You can say no.”

Lumi knew there would be no denying him in the face of those deep cerulean blues—they lure Lumi in, just like the coastal waters do. He sinks in the eye contact. His lips try to move, but the words do not come to him.

“Lumi,” Khimi whispers.

Lumi shakes his head, breaking the trance. “After that incident, there were a few times when the acolytes would tease me. Saint Nina would tell me to ignore it and I wouldn’t. It would get so mad that I couldn’t help it. I seldom won those fights. Sometimes I wondered if they provoked me on purpose; it was like they were prepared for me.”

Khimi snorts at the observation. “Then, how many fights were there?”

“Oh, some number,” Lumi croaks, “but not all of them were my fault. Nina asked one of her guards, Hasim, to take charge of my discipline and he understood that it wasn’t always my fault… and he taught me to defend myself. I kinda just kept away from everyone, and then eventually they put me in with a buncha weirdos.”

“Your roommates,” Khimi offers, while he strokes Lumi’s chin with a slow touch.

Lumi nods. “I get along with them fine … but I think, deep down, they might fear me. I’ve heard Cara whisper about me to other acolytes before. Nothing mean-spirited, but I doubt they feel like I belong.”

Khimi scoffs. “If they know your claim that you hear the whispers of the gods, perhaps the real issue is their envy.”

“If I knew it was such a big deal, I would have kept it to myself,” Lumi responds. A wave reaches his toes and he pulls back to avoid it. As it drifts back, he sighs at his jumpiness and falls flat onto the sand. His hands thump at either side of him. Khimi follows to the ground, with the tips of his fingers tapping Lumi’s in the narrow gap between them.

“It has brought trouble for you, I can tell. I doubted it, at first, but you must really believe in all of this—the gods, fate, our souls calling to each other?” Khimi asks in a whisper. He looks at the sky above and Lumi follows his eye-line: the stars wink at them as they peek out from the dusk.

“Who knows? I could be mad as sin,” Lumi chuckles humorlessly. “I learned magick from the things I hear, though, and that can’t be madness. Her voice echoes in my mind and I just… repeat what she says, and it makes strange things happen.”

“Bad things?”

“N-no, not necessarily,” Lumi begins at a whisper, while his tail slaps the sand. He had never spoken this explicitly about the voice inside him. “But she taught me a lot… tries to teach me, anyway. There are so many spells, invokations, rituals. She said it would come easier with repetition. And she told me about you, how you would come for me one day.” He wraps his little finger around Khimi’s. “It could be that I’m connected with some kind of benevolent spirit and it’s not a god. But, as far as fate and our souls are concerned… I believe with all my heart. All of me, Khimi.” He laughs again. “I barely know you, but I think I fell in love with you this week.” The admission flies out of him, as easy as anything.

Khimi’s finger tightens around Lumi’s, but he stays silent a long while before he speaks. “There is so much that I am uncertain of. What I know is that… I am happy right now, here with you.”

Lumi is overcome by an ache in his chest, his heart thrumming. He sets his free hand above it. “You mean that?”

“I have no reason to lie,” Khimi groans.

Lumi takes his larger hand and pulls it over his chest, pressing their fingers into the fabric of his chiton. “Feel my heart,” he whispers, turning to face Khimi.

His heart feels as though it will burst through his chest at feeling the weight of their hands together. They lock eyes—almost immediately, Lumi feels tears start to well up in his eyes.

Khimi moves slow and deliberately to climb over top of Lumi. His legs and hands on either side of Lumi while he looks down at him. “Why are you crying?” he questions in a whisper.

“I don’t think I’ve ever been happier than when you’re with me. I mean it, not like this.”

Khimi’s lips meet Lumi’s, his hand moves along to Lumi’s waist, then dips beneath him, pulling at the small of his back. Lumi does not know where to start, with his hands pressed against Khimi’s chest, before he begins feeling his abdomen, then his chest, then pushing back the linen shirt and threading his fingers into the hair underneath it.

Lumi’s back is arched from the ground, his pelvis to Khimi’s abs. He attempts to hold himself up, but it’s Khimi that keeps him steady there. He can no longer simply think he is in love with Khimi—he knows it.

Their lips move in tandem; their tongues explore each inch of one another’s mouth.

“I can’t wait,” Lumi breathes between kisses, “to be with you, in Rhaz, every day.”

“Perfect,” Khimi moans, his breath hot against Lumi’s cheek. “It will be perfect.”

Nina’s Farewell

---

On the day of their departure, the meeting between Khimi and Saint Nina concludes almost as quickly as it began, and the caravan’s business at the temple concluded. Khimi offered to transport any wares produced at the temple to markets across the Desert Cities, in exchange for a hefty percentage of the sale proceeds. Nina conceded politely to his proposal, but she required that the terms of production follow loose deadlines and production goals—the temple was not known for its speed at ceramics-making. Lumi sits beside Khimi, rather than with Nina or the other temple officials. The complicated dialogue had him dizzy. As well, all throughout the meeting, her steely gaze would meet Lumi’s eyes and he did not recognize her expression. It left him with an uncomfortable foreboding. At one point, he pouted at her and held eye contact rather than glancing away; she kept her eyes leveled at him, ignoring the discussion in the room. Is this a staring contest? Obviously she has something to talk about with me.

When all parties finish outlining the details of the agreement, set in ink, Nina stands: a sign that the meeting had reached its conclusion. When the accessory parties disperse, it is Khimi, Lumi, Nina, Rashid and Amani who remain in the meeting room. Lumi feels a strong urge to reach out and grab Khimi’s hand under the table, but he opts to tug and pick the hem of his chiton. Rashid looks about the room with a chuckle, and he stands to exit the room. Amani follows solemnly behind him, with a pitying glance back at the three who remain. No one speaks and the room is filled with the sound of the crackling brazier and the scent of jasmine incense.

Saint Nina prowls around the table to them, cool and collected. Lumi doubts that Khimi can tell, but he sees that she carries a hint of aggravation in her sharp and still mien. Lumi feels tense and uncomfortable, scared of Nina’s anger. Khimi reassures him with a hand placed between his shoulders. When she reaches them, Nina begins, “Though we have concluded our business, I believe there is still a discussion at hand.”

“Nina…”

Nina turns away from him abruptly and looks to Khimi. “I can predict the reason you brought him with you today. Would you prefer to intercept me?” she asks, in a breathy, pained tone.

“Saint Nina, I apologize for any subterfuge; it was not my intent,” Khimi replies with a sigh. “Lumi and I have spoken at length, such that we—”

“You plan to take him,” she says, cutting off his careful statement. She looks to Lumi, then. “I would not see you leave. I could make the temple more of a home for you. I see you as my child, still, after these many years.”

“No, Nina! I’m going to Rhaz with Khimi!” Lumi interrupts, his cheeks puffed and red. “I can’t be here anymore and there’s nothin’ you can do—I overheard your conversation with Amani and I think you knew that, didn’t you? I c-can’t stay here when—”

Nina holds up her hand to stay his desperate answers. “I have neglected to shelter you from those worries. I thought you unbothered by the petty concerns of the temple order. That was my mistake. I will protect you, Lumi. If you desired to stay, I would protect you always.”

Lumi growls, “But you’ve already done so much!” He stands from his chair.Next to him, Khimi shifts uncomfortably, his presence still a comfort to Lumi.

“Have I?” Nina asks, “How could that be true, when you have made this decision?” She reaches out her hands to him.

“N-Nina, I’m sorry.”

Nina’s placid front starts to crack and her expression softens. With his hands in hers, she replies, “Once you leave the temple, Lumi… No longer will you have my protection from the world. I cannot stop what it may have in store for you.”

“I can protect myself,” insists Lumi, stepping closer to her. “I promise!”

Nina’s attention flickers to Khimi and then back to the small aslan before her. “I have not prepared you for what I believe you will face. Do you think this man…” She turns her eyes fully to Khimi, then. “There will be dangers untold that you may be required to face for him, Lord Zeybek. Can I entrust that responsibility to you? Can you split your heart from the Cerulean Star?”

Khimi huffs, off-put that their attention shifted to him. He stands and offers a quick bow. “I will do everything in my power. I wish to protect him, as well, Saint.”

Nina scoffs, her hands tightening on Lumi’s. “‘Your power’ has much to prove, then. Khimi, he is important. I say that as his mother and as a Saint. Should harm visit him, I will see you reckon with it. My wrath is infrequent and unpitying.”

Lumi frowns at Nina. “Stop, you’re only trying to scare him off!”

“It would take more than this,” replies Khimi under his breath to him. Lumi catches his brief smirk and it makes his heart skip a beat.

A touch of anger reaches Nina’s soft voice as she says, “I choose to be generous in my hopes for you both—hopes that you both understand the possibilities and the risks. Your journey will not be easy, especially if you are following fickle whims.”

Khimi smiles with confidence. “I will care for him always, Saint Nina,” he replies with another bow.

Lumi giggles giddily. “See? He’s already great!” he says, “just like I dreamed!”

Nina cannot hide her skepticism. “I am not convinced as easily as you, Lumi.” She lets out a deep breath. “Please hear me, Lord Zeybek,” she says, addressing Khimi, “I mean you no disrespect. You seem a capable man. I do not hand Lumi to another lightly. He has a special place in my heart and it has been my joy to watch him grow these few years.”

“Not in height,” Lumi huffs, his rounded ears lowering.

Nina hums at him and chuckles. “Perhaps not in height. You grow in spirit and in compassion.” She gives him a sweet smile, before looking back to Khimi. “There is nothing I want more than that you find someone with whom you continue to grow.”

Khimi runs the finger over the scar on his cheek. “Saint Nina, I can’t quite explain it,” he begins, his words faltering. “T-there is something inexplicable. I-I felt it when I first met him. It felt like I knew him.”

“Me too!” Lumi insists, nodding his head. His tail swings behind him excitedly. “It was like my heart broke and mended itself at the same time.”

Khimi raises a brow at Lumi. “Though I couldn’t quite describe it before… it would be just the same Lumi describes.”

Nina looks between the two of them. “It’s a curious thing, the meeting of two fated souls. It has been said by Talman scholars that not even the gods could stop the meeting of a fated pair.” She sighs quietly. “I have faith that what you speak is the truth, and you aren’t taking advantage of my son.”

Khimi places his hand over his heart. “I swear by my honor as a Zeybek.”

Lumi’s ears twitch. She’s going to scare him! “Saint—”

“Lumi,” she interrupts coldly. “You’ve still got much to learn. Though our gods may not be part of the same order, I won’t allow you to give up your life as a servant of the Faith. In Rhaz, you’ll be welcomed with open arms at one of the sanctuaries.”

Lumi purses his lips. “But it’s as you said… my gods are not the same—”

“I won’t let you forget the importance of worship and duty. Sanctuaries are places where anyone of the Faith, regardless of their order, can pray.”

Khimi chuckles to himself at Lumi’s unwillingness, and Lumi shoots a scornful glance at him.

Lumi releases her hands and looks back at Khimi. “Could you give us a moment?”

“Khimi,” Nina begins. “The path Lumi walks… it won’t be easy, he’ll need you. Should he falter, you must be there for him. If you are his animae dimidium meae then this should be a given. Just as Lumi will always be there for you when you need him, and you will need him.”

“Nina…” Lumi whispers.

Khimi’s brow furrows. “I swear it.”

“Then it is understood.”

“Yes,” Khimi whispers with another deep bow before he walks from the room with a clenched jaw.

“Shall we take this conversation outdoors?” Nina asks softly. She places her hand on the heavy wooden door.

“If it pleases you,” Lumi replies, his body still facing Khimi’s direction.

They walked in silence through the temple, acolytes and clerics stop to bow in respect. Though he normally felt confident, Saint Nina had a way of making Lumi feel weaker than he already was. Lumi thinks to himself that perhaps that is the truth of it, I am weak. The hem of Lumi’s chiton rips, his nervous hands tearing at the linen fabric. The saint halts in her tracks, kneeling before Lumi. She places a hand on the ripped cloth. A smile crosses her lips while a faint light radiates from her palm, the fabric mending itself back together.

“T-thanks,” Lumi stammers. “I was gonna fix it.”

“Isn’t the first time you’ve torn your tunic.” Nina turns back to the mirror-like water, standing in front of the reflecting pool. “Do you understand, Lumi?”

“W-what?”

“Things will only become more difficult for you from here on out,” she says sternly. She crosses her arms; her ivory silken shift clings tightly to her form. “I want to tell you that things will be easy, but they won’t.”

Lumi steps closer. “What do you mean?”

“Things are… Complex, Lumi. You’ve never been to a city, not for long anyway,” Nina whispers. “This temple has protected you from the world—”

“I’ll be okay!”

Nina sighs and turns to Lumi. She claps his face between her hands. “I’m sure you will, Little Lion.”

Lumi’s eyes begin to brim with tears, matching the tears trickling from Nina’s eyes. “W-will you come see me in Rhaz?”

Nina scoffs. “Unbelievable,” she says, brushing the tears from her red eyes. “You’re supposed to come to the saint, remember?”

“Y-yeah but—”

“No buts.” Nina laughs. “Just promise me… that you’ll live your life to the fullest. Don’t let that little lord hurt you. I’ll kill him if he does.”

Lumi looks up into Nina’s eyes. “I’ll come visit you someday, I promise!”

Nina’s arms wrap around him, her thin frame tightens in a bear-like squeeze. “You’re too good for their world,” she mutters under her breath.

“What do you mean?”

Nina nudges her sharp nose between Lumi’s rounded ears. “It’s nothing. Just don’t let them change you. Don’t let anyone change you,” she whispers and places a kiss on his forehead.

Uncontrollable wails leave Lumi’s lips as Nina embraces him. Heavy tears stream down his cheeks with her motherly embrace. Nina was the first person to have ever shown him true kindness and compassion. She had given him a home when he was homeless, tried to teach him to read and write when no one would, and loved him when everyone else turned on him. Despite all the trouble, the fights, the years of grief and tears. Nina loved him, she was like his mother. No, she would always be—Mom.

“Mom!” Lumi cries aloud, holding himself against her.

Tears drip from Nina’s chin in response, her body shaking violently with her muted sobs.

---

^[1] Geas: A magical or binding vow, often found in mythology and fantasy literature. It compels an individual to perform a specific action or adhere to certain rules. Breaking a geas typically results in severe consequences, such as punishment or a curse.

^[2] Voice: Saints are often called by this revered title, reflecting their sacred duty as messengers of the gods.

^[3] Yilan(YEE-lahn): Beastkin with the traits of snakes. Hasim in particular has the traits of a red-bellied black snake.

^[4] Ikati(ee-KAH-tee): Beastkin with the traits of cats.