Wing and a Prayer

Above, the night sky was clouded over; below, however, the lights of Voerbertenberg shimmered bright and beautiful, like a field of stars inverted. Ardbert let out a breath, trying to force the tension in his shoulders out with it, and leaned back onto the grass. He'd gone maybe a little too close to the cliff's edge for comfort, entranced by the view -- but, of course, if he slipped and fell, he could count on Seto to catch him. Seto would be furious with him, of course, if that happened... but he'd still catch him.

The amaro had coiled up beside him so he rested against Seto's soft-furred flank, one wing tilted outwards over Ardbert like a roof over a lean-to -- something Seto always did when they were alone together. A protective gesture, something Ardbert had seen other tame amaro do for their pups or smaller mates. Never for their riders or trainers, though Ardbert didn't really think of Seto and himself that way, and it was clear Seto didn't either.

They'd known each other since Ardbert was young and Seto was nothing but an egg. Ardbert had no idea exactly when he realized Seto could understand the speech of mankind -- there had been no bolt of revelation, no sudden moment of enlightenment. He simply found himself talking to Seto like he'd talk to any Spoken, and Seto had always responded in his own way. He couldn't speak himself -- perhaps the form of his mouth and tongue made it impossible -- but it was hardly difficult to understand the general nature of his responses and his feelings. The subtle nuances, perhaps, eluded Ardbert...but he was certain Seto felt the same about his own halting attempts to communicate. Even despite their difference in kind, Ardbert knew he was hardly the most forthcoming of folk.

Seto dipped his head down, under his wing, nuzzling at Ardbert's chest. Ardbert put his hand up to stroke soft down at the base of Seto's horn, and the amaro thrummed low in his throat at the gesture.

Renda-Rae and Lammitt were likely down below in the city, with Renda busy trying to run through all their coin and Lammitt, hopefully, acting as the voice of reason. Renda-Rae had tried to convince Ardbert to come along, with a few too many salacious elbows to the ribs and insinuations about pleasant company. She was right -- it had been quite a while since Ardbert had taken a girl, or indeed anyone at all, to bed, but travelling had started to take its toll on him. All Ardbert wanted after the adventure was done and they'd taken their reward was to spend some time in quiet with someone who well understood his heart.

Eyes closed, nearly purring like a great cat, Seto nipped at the fabric of Ardbert's shirt, pulling the hem up to expose a slice of midriff. He shivered, winding his hands in Seto's fur, and Ardbert felt Seto's dry, papery tongue lap at the exposed skin. Ardbert arched up into his searching tongue, but almost as soon as he had begun Seto pulled away, turning his head to regard Ardbert with one long-lashed, onyx-black eye a little sheepishly. Afraid, perhaps, he'd taken a step too far.

Ardbert shook his head, reaching up again to scratch just behind Seto's ear, where he knew he liked it best. "Quite all right, old friend," he murmured, moving to unlace his shirt. The two of them had, upon occasion, strayed close to this line -- but why shouldn't they cross it, together? They slept curled together, caressed each other, shared affection -- if Seto had been a man, no one would have been surprised if they had become lovers some day. Even if Seto couldn't speak, well -- if Renda-Rae could lure a stranger with whom she shared not a word of common language into her bed for the night, then surely Ardbert could trust he and Seto knew each other's intentions well enough. They'd communicated in their own way for so long, after all.

Seto chuffed in amusement, nipping lightly at Ardbert's exposed skin -- not enough to draw blood, of course, but a sharp, playful bite to draw his attention. Ardbert hissed, back arching, and the teeth were replaced by more of Seto's soft, dry tongue -- so different from a human's, long and sinuous and rough enough to keep his fur clean. It snaked around the curve of Ardbert's hip, up the long trail from navel to sternum and back downwards, with an alien agility. Ardbert's breath came quick and hot as he clung to Seto's soft neck with one arm. His next move had hardly ever been so obvious.

With his free hand, he unlatched his belt and shifted his trousers down to his knees. His cock hardly needed any coaxing, and for all the physical difference between them Seto fumbled less than the average youth trying his first roll in the hay. His dextrous tongue lapped at the tip of Ardbert's cock, drawing a short gasp from him before he felt Seto lick along the underside of his full length, hilt to point; Seto's tongue curled around him at both edges, almost as though stroking him. The roughness was strange, almost unpleasant at first, too much for over-sensitive flesh; but Ardbert wound his hands in the longer fur near Seto's shoulder, pressing his body up into that impossibly soft, cloudlike pelt.

"A...a little...a little slower," Ardbert pleaded, as Seto began to lap at him in earnest. "It's all...a bit..." Seto thrummed in response -- a powerful vibration that Ardbert felt deep in his core -- and licked a little more gently, almost teasingly, to acclimate Ardbert to the strange feeling of his tongue.

Ardbert sat up on his elbows slightly, shifting back so Seto did not have to crane his long neck quite so sharply. Of course, this meant Ardbert could not cling to his fur, arms wrapped around his body like he so desperately wanted to do. Their bodies simply did not fit together in the way he wanted -- that easy manner in which Spoken coupled with each other. If they continued, they'd run into difficulties that put accidentally lying down on your mystel partner's tail to shame.

Well, no matter. Ardbert welcomed a challenge.

Seto chirped as he coiled his long tongue almost entirely around Ardbert's cock, stroking him with agonizing slowness until he fairly moaned with frustration. "I said--a little slower, not--" he murmured -- although dirty banter was maybe a little unfair when your partner couldn't answer back, and in any case Ardbert wasn't any good at keeping his head in situations like this. Seto chuffed again, mixing light laps with long, intense strokes as though experimenting to see what Ardbert preferred.

He loved all of it. It didn't matter if his movements were awkward, if their bodies were not made for this. Soon he was lost in the moment, in the wild pleasure of it all. Finally, Seto found a rhythm, and Ardbert bucked his hips up against Seto's chin, the softness of his fur contrasting with the roughness of his tongue, over and over again, driving himself closer to--to--

Knowing they were alone save for the buzzing of the occasional insect, Ardbert held nothing back. He gasped and moaned out loud as climax overtook him, twisting his body as the world momentarily went white.

Seto, as gentle as he might be with a pup, lapped at Ardbert's softening cock, leaving him clean.

It was a long moment before Ardbert was able to catch his breath; he waited for guilt, disgust, something to come rushing in and fill him with regret at what he'd done -- what THEY'D done, together -- but it never came. He felt as though he was floating -- a calm, quiet sense of ease and a small streak of wicked joy.

Seto was eyeing him, as though gauging his reaction. Of course, the cries of pleasure and pain from a Spoken throat sounded a little too similar to an alien ear. Ardbert nuzzled into Seto's neck, murmuring wordless reassurances, before sliding down to the grass and fumbling about on Seto's belly, stroking the fur there softly, like he might caress a more ordinary lover.

Like many four-legged creatures, amaro kept their cocks safely tucked away inside themselves when they weren't required, which had always struck Ardbert as a rather better way of doing things. Their dalliance had left Seto half-hard, grey-pink cock pressing against his fur; for a moment, Ardbert was taken with the sheer size of him. Of course, Seto was near three times his size -- of course he'd be endowed to match his own species, not Ardbert's. Reaching out carefully, he found his hand only barely wrapped around the middle of it. Seto cooed at his touch, shaking himself from nose to tail, then curled his neck down to nudge at Ardbert with his muzzle. It was clear he wanted Ardbert to continue, even if he wasn't fully certain how. What pleased an amaro, besides the attention of one of its own kind?

Hesitantly, Ardbert pressed a kiss to the tip of Seto's cock. It tapered towards the end, swelling at the base, but even at its smallest part it would be quite a struggle to get most of it inside his mouth. Improvising, Ardbert suckled at the tip, tongue playing over the slit; with both his hands he encircled the shaft of Seto's cock, stroking up and down with long, firm strokes, his grip harder than he would have used on himself or another man.

Unlike Spoken, it seemed, amaro were easy and quick to bring to climax. It seemed they'd barely started when Seto let out a crooning crow and tossed his head back, cock swelling in Ardbert's hands. The deed, it seemed, was fast; the results less so. Seto curled his whole body to bite down on Ardbert's shoulder -- harder than he had earlier, with enough force to hurt, though Ardbert hardly minded -- and hummed an ecstatic purr as he spilled great handfuls of seed over Ardbert's chin, overflowing his clenched fingers, spilling in a warm, wet waterfall over his bare collarbone. The thickness at the base of Seto's cock swelled too, presumably to pin him to his mate for the duration of his climax -- minutes, perhaps longer, spent tied in mutual ecstasy.

There was far too much to lap up as Seto had done, but Ardbert licked a taste of the glistening seed from his lips. As he held on to Seto, watching him, Ardbert couldn't help but wonder if maybe, someday, they might devise together a way for him to take Seto's cock in the proper way -- to let Seto mount and tie him, fill him with this overflowing seed and pin him there until, at long last, he was satisfied. It would be a challenge, but of course, Ardbert always liked a challenge.

Finally, it seemed Seto had finished. His huffing breath slowed; his cock softened in Ardbert's hands; he even chirped sharply, as though to gain Ardbert's attention. Ardbert shifted his body out from beneath Seto to look him in the eyes.

It had started to rain, at some point -- only lightly. The grass was wet, and Seto stretched one wing out again over Ardbert, shielding him from the water. With a gentle nudge of his nose, he indicated that perhaps they should clean themselves up and head back.

Ardbert shook his head. "No. I think, if the rain doesn't bother you -- which I do not think it does -- I'd rather stay out here and sleep under the stars."

Seto turned his head to look upwards at the sky, clouded over a blank and uniform grey, with a sarcastic click of his tongue before settling down, wing sheltering Ardbert at his side, for a bit of shut-eye.