Distractions

[ravery]

By the third day of the fourth week back home, Julius was feeling... drained.

He\'d forgotten just how taxing all of this internal politics could be; everything from the rumours of the court of his father\'s illness, to the damage control he\'d been required to conduct over his squire\'s previous behaviour, to the suspicions (and Julius found that these were the most ridiculous) that he might himself be a spy for Elaria\'s neighbouring nations. And he was still stuck on this Gods damned letter to Doctor Galen Boivin, for his own less than... admirable behaviour. He couldn\'t believe that he\'d allowed himself to act in such a crude, unthinking way, and especially in the middle of the local market place too.

In short, Julius was exhausted, and his lack of sleep over the past week or so was not helping.

Pressing his fingers against the bridge of his nose, the knight exhaled slowly before turning his attention back to sheets of paper in front of him, mouth tightening into a scowl as he struggled to find suitable words. Dear Doctor Galen? No, that was far too familiar. To Mister Galen Boivin? ... No, he needed to include the man\'s title in there. Addressed in absolute humbleness and fidelity to a certain  Mister Doctor Galen Boivin from his loyal servant, Julius Brodwick of the King\'s Guard?

Talon save him. This was just getting ridiculous.

Shaking his head to try and clear it, Julius glared down at the sheets of paper for a moment in the attempt to will the letter to write itself before snorting softly, sliding his chair back. He was never going to get anywhere with this letter if he didn\'t find some way to get his thoughts in order, and at the moment, he was just too damn distracted. Pushing himself up, the knight stretched absently before pulling a face at his doublet, fingering at the buttons leading towards the overly-stiff collar as he walked around his study desk towards his door. His clothes were obviously not helping. He had no idea why anyone would willingly subject themselves to such gaudy, starchy attire.

Opening the door to his study and stepping back out into the hall, Julius decided he might as well take a break and get changed. It was a pleasant enough day outside, and a walk through the countryside might help to clear his head.

[w0rmy]

Dee was worried. He half regretted saying those words to Robin, especially the ‘cock’ bit. That wasn’t a good move. Robin was going to tell Julius how rude he had been and then force him to apologise, all that boring stuff. Dee sighed lightly but continued to hold Blake’s hand, he wasn’t about to let go just because they were in public. Anyway, it was no one’s business except theirs. Only a few feet ahead, two girls saw the linked hands and began to whisper eagerly to one another, Dee made a face at them. He didn’t like people gossiping but at the same time, the boy felt pleased. He was happy to be with Blake again, he had missed the boy. Dee squeezed Blake’s hand.

As they grew closer to Brodwick manor, the knot in Dee’s stomach tightened. Despite the fact he was happy being with Blake, he didn’t want to see Julius. That is, he didn’t want to make his Knight stressed again. God, the boy was talented at making Julius stressed. He didn’t do it on purpose… most of the time.  

Julius’s dwelling was now in sight, Dee had it in mind to tell Robin not to stress Julius. “What he will he do?” Dee lent in close to Blake, whispering into other’s ear. “If he does anything, I will not be happy.” He looked over to Robin, eying the man’s back with dislike.

[DoTheLimbo]

The trip had taken around forty minutes due to Robin having trouble with the little tips of direction Dee reluctantly gave him now and then. His cheeks were softly flushed at the walk, but only from endorphins. He carried the boy’s equipments over his back. Glancing around as they approached the manor, Robin looked over his shoulder at the two boys. He kept his gaze on Dee, wondering exactly what the boy’s story was. Robin was also curious as how the two met. After all squires usually are a tad too busy to associate with noble boys. The instructor shifted the equipment on his back before bringing his attention back to how he was going to introduce himself to this knight.

Blake kept his hand grasping Dee’s hand. His eyes continued to glance at the other boy. For a few quiet minutes when they were walking, he could have sworn it was all a dream. Not many of the few boys he got involved with ever would let him hold their hand in public. They were all worried about their image, reputation, and families. Blake scoffed to himself at the thought.

As they reached the manor, Robin suddenly stopped in his tracks. His delicate hands went up to his hair, making sure it was neat and that his ribbon was perfect. After tapping the tip of his ring finger against his lower lip to check that his gloss was well done too, he continued on.

Blake looked over to Dee as the boy suddenly spoke up. He blinked before glancing at his instructor with a confused expression, “I actually have no idea.” He responded quietly, “This has never happened before. At least he never brought me along if he’s done this before.” Blake’s gaze lingered on Dee, his hand squeezing the other’s. “But I’m sure it’ll be alright.” Blake trusted his instructor and was sure that Robin wasn’t going to condemn them for their actions. If Robin wanted to punish Blake, he would have merely told his mother instead.

[ravery]

After having cleaned up and changed into more comfortable clothes, Julius was starting to feel a hell of a lot better about everything. Sitting himself down in one of the chairs not already occupied with books and travel bags, the knight tugged on his boots before pushing himself up again, brushing his shirt off absently and he headed towards the door. He was considering going to find Dee to ask if the boy would like to come with him, when he remembered the squire was already out, practising his archery.  Despite Julius\'s misgivings about letting the boy out of his sight, and especially after everything that had happened with Doctor Galen and Lord Dubhdara, the knight had decided that so long as Dee was doing something constructive, there could be no harm in allowing him at least a little independence.

Heading out through the doors of his bedroom and closing them quietly behind him, Julius made his way down the hall, stretching absently before tying his hair back with one of the cords he kept around his wrist. He was just about to head down the stairs when one of the maids caught his attention, dropping a quick curtsey before alerting that it appeared Dee would be arriving home shortly, at with a few guests too. Rather surprised at the news, Julius thanked the girl before stopping by the window, tilting his head and looking down through the glass at the pathway leading up to the manor. Why, the girl was right! There was Dee- he could never mistake that hair- with another short-ish boy, and a young man accompanying them.

As they drew closer to the house, Julius was able to make out a few more details. Dee appeared to be holding hands with the boy beside him. That was... strange. And worrying, given the number of arguments they\'d had about the squire\'s social life. Frowning a little, Julius paused for a moment, trying to place where he had seen the other boy before, before just blinking when he realized it was the curly haired boy from the disaster at the Pencawr Manor.

This could not be a good sign. Straightening and stepping back from the window, Julius turned to continue on down the stairs, running his fingers over the stair banister absently and worrying at the inside of his lip. He didn\'t want to jump to conclusions. He\'d already proven to himself that doing so generally lead to even more trouble, and Julius was already up to his neck in it.

[w0rmy]

Dee sighed as Blake spoke. So this has never happened before? Great. He shifted on the spot, irritably running his hand through his hair. This was a situation he would rather not be in. Never the less, he kept his grasp onto Blake’s hand.

As the three waited, Dee wondered vaguely how Julius would respond to this. Oh, plus the fact that Blake and he was linking hands. And anyway, it wasn’t as if Blake was thirty or something ridiculous like that, in fact, the boy was only a year younger than him! Oh Talon, Dee’s eyes widened slightly. He had just remembered that Blake thought Dee was seventeen, not fifteen! Oh Talon…

Dee looked down at Blake nervously, imagining what the reaction would be when he found out. There might be yelling… or that soft, angry talking which Dee detested. The only reason he had lied was to make Blake feel better. How would Blake feel if his father had slept with a fifteen year old boy? Dee shuddered slightly.

“Is Julius there?” Dee asked impatiently, whipping his hair back. “If he isn’t…” He didn’t finish his sentence. He could have sworn he saw a figure in the window…

Talon damn it!

Julius was, indeed, here. Dee bit his tongue and waited for his knight’s arrival.

[DoTheLimbo]

Robin reached the door, knocking lightly on it with his knuckles. He stood, his posture trying to make his small frame as tall as possible. His hazel eyes flickered about the manor, admiring it. It didn’t take long until the door was open by a servant. Robin spoke up as soon as he saw the servant, “I’d like to speak to… Julius Brodwick.” He said, remembering the name from his thoughts. Robin leaned in just a bit, his eyes catching a figure on the staircase. He spoke up a bit loudly, “This is Mister Robin Chaput,” He waited for a few seconds for the figure to reach the lobby. As soon as Julius was in hearing, Robin glanced down the other. He was sure that this must be the knight. Robin could tell by the figure’s contours. He had been in the sporting world long enough to tell the difference of one proficient in sports and especially swordsmanship by just a mere glance. Robin continued, “I’m here to speak about his squire, Dee.”

Blake kept a hold of Dee’s hand as they stopped in front of the manor. He glanced at Dee before looking back towards the door. Blake really didn’t know Julius all that well. He knew that it was this man that took Dee away from him however. Frowning at the memory, he bristled a little bit. His hand squeezed Dee’s painfully this time, feeling a similar feeling to jealousy wash over him. He wondered if Dee had ever slept with the man. Blake glanced at Dee as he thought about this. It would explain why Julius seemed so protective of Dee when Galen was trying to help after the dinner. He waited to listen to what Robin was going to say.

[w0rmy]

(lol...so, I\'m an idiot and accidentally replied. XDDDD I hope you don\'t mind. I DIDN\'T MEAN TO...)

Dee started when Blake had squeezed his hand. He looked down at the boy, his forehead slightly creased. Dee looked over the other, trying to figure out Blake was thinking. It was impossible tell. He gently squeezed the other’s hand, his thumb stroking the flesh. Even though Dee wasn’t able to tell what Blake was thinking, he could tell by the look on his face that it wasn’t a happy thought.  

Once the door had opened, Dee had tugged Blake forward and slipped past Robin. He didn’t wait for the man. He couldn’t bother being polite now, it was far too much effort. Dee wished this wasn’t happening, he wanted to be alone with Blake. Dee looked back at Blake, his odd eyes twinkling, the corners of his lips curling. It was obvious what was on the squire’s mind. He hoped that Robin and Julius would talk in private. If they did, who knows what the boys could get up to!

Dee was so rapped up in his thoughts, he didn’t notice Julius walking towards them. With a free hand, he twirled Blake’s locks with his finger. He had forgotten how soft it was. “You’re hair smells like pineapple. Where did you get such a shampoo?”

[ravery]

(edited: ack! Sorry, didn\'t see your reply, w0rmy. Lemme just edit my post, alright?)

Heading down the stairs to greet his visitors, Julius frowned slightly as the  man he\'d seen approaching earlier offered his name. Mister Robin Chaput? The name wasn\'t familiar to him at all, but then again, that wasn\'t very surprising. Julius had been decidedly absent in certain circles, much to his father\'s chagrin. He hoped that he hadn\'t already been introduced to the man, as it would be unforgivably rude of him to forget someone, but then again, he doubted very much that a complete stranger would know where he lived. Unless, of course, Dee had brought him there. There was always that possibility.

Straightening his shirt absently as he stepped into the lobby, Julius raised an eyebrow, finally close enough to see his guests properly. Dee was there with the boy from before, and with a small frown, Julius noted that their hands were still linked. He had not previously thought that Dee and Blake would have had such a connection but, well, there they were. And he doubted very much that that sort of contact- especially such blatant contact- was entirely platonic. Frown deepening as Dee reached a hand up to play with the other boy\'s hair, Julius found that his suspicions were confirmed. Damn it, there was another guest, right there next to him! The boy didn\'t even think! Inwardly cursing at his squire\'s lack of consideration,  Julius turned his attention back to his other visitor before blinking in slight surprise.

The young man he\'d seen from the window was strikingly attractive up close, with hair unusual enough for Julius to know that he definitely had not met the man before, as he would have remembered him if he had. Feeling somewhat self-concious all of a sudden given his less than formal clothing, he straightened a little before giving his visitors a short bow.

“Sir Julius Brodwick, at your service,” he said, inwardly cringing a little at how awkward he still was when it came to introductions.”To what do I owe this visit?”

[DoTheLimbo]

Blake giggled when Dee began to play with his hair. His eyelashes fluttered flirtatiously towards the boy. He was enjoying such young displays of affection. It made him feel important and special. The fact that Dee blatantly ignored his knight too caused a surge of accomplishment in Blake’s chest. He smiled sweetly at the other’s question, “A shop at the markets. I could show you it sometime.” Blake did not mind his instructor or the knight. His instructor was used to Blake, therefore no manners were needed between the two in such a situation. The knight, Blake did not care for and was going to make it as obvious as Dee had made it that he didn’t care for Robin.

Robin watched the two boys go ahead into the house and followed hesitantly. He kept an eye on the boys for a few seconds. Robin wasn’t sure if he wanted them to run off, but then again he supposed it would be best if he spoke to Julius in private. He brought his attention back to the knight, his charming smile beaming. Robin noticed the other seemed a bit awkward, but didn’t mind. He enjoyed it when nobles seemed actually human opposed to perfect mannered robots.

Reaching out to shake Julius’s hand, he continued to smile, “It’s a pleasure to meet you.” He responded before continuing, “I came to speak to you about your squire, Dee. He came to an archery lesson with Blake today. I am Blake’s archery instructor. I just would like to talk to you about some concerns I have.” He glanced towards the boys before looking back at the knight, “If we can, I’d like to speak in private.”

Blake glanced over at Robin hearing the word ‘private’. He looked back at Dee with a small mischievous smile playing on his pouty lips. His fingers played with the other’s hands. The boy didn’t even bother to say hello to the knight. After all, it was Robin that wanted to speak to Julius, Blake could care less. Though the boy was a tad curious as to what Robin was going to talk about.

[w0rmy]

Dee smiled widened. He liked seeing Blake giggle. He continued to play with the boy’s hair, twining his index finger within the curls and then releasing it. Dee couldn’t take his eyes off the other, there were urges rampaging throughout his body. He stopped playing with Blake’s hair, his hand had now drifted down to the other’s waist, his fingers gripping the fabric. “Yes.” Dee had forgotten where they were. And whom they were with. It was as if, the two boys were in their own little fantasy world. He squeezed Blake’s waist. “I would love to go with you to the markets.”

Despite how much he wanted to stay in the fantasy realm, he was snapped back to reality upon hearing Julius. Dee kept his hand on Blake’s hip, he knew Julius would disapprove but… but he couldn’t help it. It had been far too long since Dee had actually touched Blake, it felt far too nice to stop now.

“Hello Julius.” Dee said, odd eyes twinkling. Even though he wanted to keep all of his attention on Blake, he supposed talking a little wouldn’t hurt. “So you’re going to talk in private? I’ll take Blake to the kitchens, I’m hungry. Are you hungry, Blake?” Dee looked back at his companion, “Come on, let’s go!” He tugged on Blake’s hand, running towards to the kitchen. He wanted to leave before Julius could have a chance to speak. The little bastard.

[ravery]

Raising his eyebrows at Dee\'s smirk, Julius\'s eyes narrowed, realizing that the boy had no intentions of sticking around for an answer. He watched both Dee and Blake head further into the house, tilting his head as his frown deepened a little.  Their behaviour had been exceptionally rude- almost foppish, with all of that bouncing and pouting- and more than a little inappropriate given their positions.  If it weren\'t for the fact that Mr Chaput was still standing there, Julius would have stopped them both and asked them to explain exactly what they thought they were playing at. Of course, he highly doubted that either one of the boys would bother stopping, and unfortunately, Mr Chaput was still standing there.

Sighing softly and rubbing at his forehead as he watched the boys go, Julius shook his head again before looking back at the other man. He was met with a rather bright smile, which came as a surprise. It had been a while since Julius had a smile like that directed at him (well, there was always Dee, but Dee didn\'t count), and Julius wasn\'t entirely sure why it did nothing but make him feel even more ungainly.

Blinking and looking down at the hand being offered to him, Julius made a face at himself before returning the Mr Chaput\'s smile and shaking his hand, albeit awkwardly. At the other man\'s words, Julius\'s smile lessened a little before tightening into a frown again, and letting go of Mr Chaput\'s hand, he stepped back, nodding and gesturing for the other man to head into one of the waiting rooms. He certainly didn\'t like the sound of what he suspected Mr Chaput\'s  had come to talk to him about, and if he was right about Blake and Dee, he doubted very much that it would result in anything positive.

At least the other man seemed pleasant enough, though. It had been some time since he\'d actually spoken to someone here who didn\'t end up a mad-man or a complete and utter bore, and Mr Chaput\'s hair was rather fetching. “A pleasure to meet you too,” he said as he followed the other man into the waiting room, pausing for a moment before closing the doors behind him. “Please, take a seat. Can I offer you a drink?”

[DoTheLimbo]

Blake felt a happy shock run through his spine when Dee touched his hips. He was enjoying the complete attention and it showed in his face, which was practically glowing. He glanced over at Julius to follow Dee’s sudden switch in attention. He gave Julius a rather pouty, smug look as if teasing the other. Blake placed a hand on Dee’s chest lightly before nodding at Dee’s words. Of course, he was hungry. The boy leaned forward as Dee suddenly tugged at his hand, easily keeping up with Dee to go to the kitchen.

Robin watched the boys’ actions with his smile still in place. He clicked his tongue in habit as the two ran off. Once Julius had shook his hand, he let it fall in front to clasp at his other hand. His hazel eyes scanned the knight, finding the awkwardness of the other rather refreshing compared to most uptight and formal knights. He wondered why Julius seemed much more worldly than the knights he saw around Oberon. The frown didn’t throw him off as he continued to smile.

Following Julius into the waiting room with his bouncy skip of a step, he looked around the room. After a second, he went to a wall. The man set down the boys’ archery equipment gently on the floor before looking back over. At the offer of a seat, he sat down. His ankles crossed as he sat down. He flipped his hair before placing his hands down neatly in his lap. Smiling, he shook his head, “That’s quite alright…Lord Julius?” He spoke the latter word as a question, finding that he wasn’t sure how to address the other man. Robin wasn’t sure if Julius was a sir or a lord, he went for the better one just to make sure his mistake wouldn’t be too terrible.

Once settled in his seat, he glanced around the room as he began to speak, “I came to talk to you about Dee.” He brought his gaze to Julius, “I just met him today, but his relationship towards Blake is very obvious. As I have been a mentor to Blake for a few years now, I am also interested in the wellbeing of his close…” Robin paused, his smile disappearing as he tried to think about how to word his thoughts, “the boys he is close to.” His thumbs began to twirl absently as he questioned Julius, “As the boy’s mentor, are you aware of Dee’s relationships?”

[w0rmy]

Dee didn’t bother to see if the coast was clear. His urges were far too strong to be thinking right. As soon as the entered the kitchen, Dee pushed Blake onto the wall. He cupped the other’s cheek, then running it down towards the contour of the boy’s shoulder. Yes, it had been far too long since their last physical encounter. “Blake.” Dee dropped his hand, wrapping it around Blake’s waist. “It’s been far too long since we… since our last encounter.” The bandaged hand had now joined the other, bringing Blake closer. As soon as their bellies touched, a delightful shiver galloped up his spine.

Dee couldn’t take it anymore. He kissed Blake’s neck. He had forgotten how soft the boy’s flesh was. The kisses at first were quite gentle but as time went by, they grew rougher. Dee even delivered a love bite. “Mnn, Blake.”

From the neck, the squire moved up to the lips. Dee wrapped his arms around Blake even tighter. Even though it had just started, little moans of pleasure rumbled deep from his chest. It was obvious that Dee had been yearning this… for quite a while. He was pretty sure Blake felt the same way. He just had to.

[ravery]

Rolling his eyes at the sound of the boys scampering off down the hall, Julius turned back to his guest, blinking as the other man set the equipment he\'d been carrying down. He shifted a little uneasily as he watched Mr Chaput take his seat, tugging his own shirt down absently in the attempt to make himself look more presentable. It wasn\'t very likely that the man had come with very good news if he wanted to talk to Julius about Dee, regardless of how fond the knight was of his squire, and regardless of how polite Mr Chaput was being.

Nodding slightly at the other man\'s question, Julius bit the inside of his lip out of nervous habit before sighing softly, pressing his fingers against the crooked bridge of his nose in the attempt to keep a hold on his temper. Talon damn it, he was just about at his wit\'s end when it came to Dee. He\'d tried  and tried and tried to get through to the boy, but no matter what he did, it didn\'t seem to have any effect. He honestly did not know what else to do with his squire anymore.

“Yes,” he said slowly, finding it a little difficult to meet the other man\'s eyes all of a sudden. “I... Yes, I am. I apologize if my squire\'s behaviour has offended you in any way.”

[DoTheLimbo]

Blake gasped when he was suddenly pushed into the wall the second they entered the kitchen. He quivered with excitement from the action. He glanced over Dee’s shoulder, noticing a figure in the back but when he was pulled closer to Dee he had no choice but to look at the other boy. He couldn’t but help and grin up at Dee, knowing exactly what was on the other’s mind.

Placing a hand on the other’s chest, Blake softly moaned when Dee kissed his neck. His thoughts of being angry at Dee disappeared for the moment of lust. While he had also been angry since the dinner, since the hunting trip Blake had been longing to be with the boy again. There were so many other things he wanted to try.

“Dee,” Blake gasped at the bite, his hands moving to wrap around the other’s neck. His back arched, leaning in closer to the other, his head tilting so that his neck was more accessible.  Kissing Dee back with force, his nails dug into the other’s back. The cloth underneath his fingers however made a flashing memory of his ripping of Dubhdara’s arm. At the memory, anger resurfaced over the lust. Bringing his hands to Dee’s chest, he pulled away. Pushing the other away from him, he stepped away from the wall. “No.” He said curtly, an angered pout on his lips. The boy crossed his arms over his chest as if trying to make a barrier from him and the other boy.

Meanwhile, Robin watched as Julius seemed to listen with great concentration. It looked as if what the instructor was saying was nothing new, and probably a tad wearisome. Robin’s expression disappeared into a slightly serious one. Taking a deep breath, he watched the other look away as if ashamed for the answer. Robin, however, listened to the man’s apology before flicking his hand at the wrist, “Oh,” He couldn’t help but suddenly giggle, “No no! I’m not offended at all.” Robin shrugged in a light-hearted manner, “Boys will be boys. I just wanted to make sure you were aware and supportive. I’m hoping that you act as Dee’s mentor in the manner or that at least he has a good role model to follow after so he still grows up respectable.” He paused, now smiling, “Though I must say that I think you should have a talk with him about jealousy. It looks like that may get him in trouble if he continues to be in a relationship with Blake.” Robin spoke frankly and without hesitation, it was obvious that homosexuality even between young boys was no strange issue to him.