For the Sake of a Wavering Light: ATKM-fic.

[marnanightingale]

Set in the All The King's Men universe, which I share with q_skud_

Undated, sometime after All The King's Men.

For cortese, on the occasion of her balancing her chequebook.

Dramatis personae (in alphabetical order):

Lord Alexander Rupert Edrington

Archie Kennedy.


Rating: semi-explicit sexuality.



For The Sake of a Wavering Light

"... Ready -- damn you! Hold your -- Christ. Hold your fire. Damn you. Damn you. Damn ... oh, God ... "

He caught the flailing hand in time to avoid a cut lip and heaved himself over, grumbling, groping in the dark. Still half-asleep, he stretched out to pull the thrashing body in, turning his face away until he could still the arm that now threatened to black his eye -- another bad one, then.

"I've got you, it's all right, I'm here, got you, 's all right..."

Hands skidding on sweat, he finally caught a twisting shoulder; he had him now in truth, and brought him down to sprawl across his chest, swearing softly as the chill of pooled sweat and an ill-placed elbow shocked the last warm dregs of sleep from him.

He sighed, tucking the smooth head safely under his chin, one arm firm against the shaking back, with his other hand stroking it in a rhythm as mindless and steady as his voice, murmuring nonsense until the broken cursing against his throat faded to a mumble and, finally, ceased altogether.

After a long moment, the body in his arms stiffened again, pulling away. "I'm awake, I'm fine now, I -- I'm all right, you don't have to --."

"I know you are." Archie kept his tone as gentle and as firm as his hands, still sweeping over the lean muscles like a pendulum, smoothing and coaxing until he felt the first loosening, felt the long body shifting against him as the warm mouth at his shoulder began to soften, then to explore, scattering tentative kisses where a moment before it had smeared and slipped heedlessly. The hard fingers digging into his side loosened their hold, crept higher to catch hold of his shoulder and curve over it, fingertips notching into the hollow at its base, and he turned his head until he could rest his cheek against the curve of Alexander's skull, smiling a little.

He lifted his face up, seeking in the dark, and Archie kissed him, long and slow, noting the prick stiff against his thigh, still gently mourning his lost sleep even as he sent his hand lower, until he felt the back beneath his hand begin to flex in time with his strokes, the pent-up energy in the sprawled limbs beginning to uncoil and change, their motions becoming sinuous and purposeful as the two of them grunted and tugged gently at one another, slow desire pushing away the last bitter tang of fear as they kissed and clung and rocked there in the dark, pricks cushioned between them, hands moving with lazy precision until Alexander sighed and buried his head once more against Archie's shoulder, bringing one hand up to tangle his fingers in Archie's nape, his sighs washing his collarbone in warmth, and Archie's hand slid down and his leg curled up until they were twined like oak and vine as Alexander half-turned and pressed knowing fingers into the slope of Archie's arse to bring them close, Archie rocking and whispering encouragement as the long, slow shudders began, liquid heat spilling over his belly. The slickness of it made Archie gasp and thrust hard, smiling into a drugged kiss as the hip he moved against twisted easily so that Archie's prick slid over the hollow to rub perfectly against the bone and he spent with a long sigh, sure and slow and all the sweeter for it.

"Made a bloody --" Alexander yawned -- "mess of the bed."

Archie shook his head, grinning, and rolled him off. "So you have. Here." He made a long arm to the floor, fumbling around until he came up with a discarded shirt; swiped it over the still-damp back and more gently over Alexander's belly, then tidied himself sketchily and tossed it away, to be dealt with later. Much -- he yawned hugely -- later.

Archie settled himself again, twitching the blankets up to warm their shoulders. Alexander wriggled back against him, shivering slightly; he snaked an arm over him, settling his face into the curve of his neck, snorting stray hairs away from his nose and holding Alexander hard as he sighed and relaxed, already half-asleep as Archie yawned against him and shut his eyes resolutely against the dawn that lit the rough plaster of the ceiling.

Comments

[petronelle.livejournal.com]

Dear God. She should balance her checkbook more often if it means this sort of thing.

Mm. Makes me want to cuddle. Or possibly commit write frottage.

[commodorified.livejournal.com]

I like win-win scenarios, I do.

And I'm so glad you like it.

I was sort of staring at earlier, going 'never has so much hot naked blond in one place proven to be so _spectacularly_ unpornographic; where have I gone wrong in my life?'

:-)

[petronelle.livejournal.com]

I didn't personally find it erotic per se, but it was very warm and very them.

I don't think you went wrong. I don't think all stories about people having sex have to be erotic, which is just as well since I find most such stories enjoyable without the least tingle.

So -- pornographic naked blonds maybe not, but adorable naked blonds, yes, in spades.

[commodorified.livejournal.com]

Eh, my sense of humour doesn't always come across well in type.

I'm quite happy with it; I was just amused/bemused at how it came out.

And yeah. Edrington and Archie -- I SO cannot call them Slutbunny and Crumpet in this context -- are adorable.

[fairestcat]

I ADORE your icon!

[petronelle.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

Now I am at a loss as to where yours is from, and I feel as if I ought to know.

[fairestcat]

It's a cap from Carrington. Sam West's back as he gives in to the temptation of Emma Thompson. With lyrics from the song "Private Universe" by Crowded House.

commodorified actually made it for me, yet more proof that she's the best girlfriend ever.

[black-hound.livejournal.com]

I was completely suckered for the first handful of paragraphs thinking the wrong person was having the nightmare. I LOVE when that happens.

Ah, this was lovely.

[commodorified.livejournal.com]

Oooh, it worked!

I didn't want it to be a huge element, but I did want that there, yes.

I'm so glad you like it!

[melusina]

This is lovely - such a sweet, comforting mood piece. . .

[commodorified.livejournal.com]

Thanks. I love when I get a bit of a look at them Just Going On, you know, as one does.

It's my kink for things with a bit of a crack in them and a few patches here and there.

[twoweevils.livejournal.com]

For meself, that kind of middle of the night, "oh-so-glad you're here with me now and real" passion is often much more titillating than the mad thrustings of so-called porn. A very satisfying vignette.

M.

[commodorified.livejournal.com]

Thank you kindly! I'm glad it worked for you.

[rubynye.livejournal.com]

Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww.

Ah, vulnerability, and ah, strength. It's nice to see the sturdiness of our Crumpet, and a crack in the Lobster's shell just wide enough to reveal tenderness.

[commodorified.livejournal.com]

Thanks! I'm so glad you liked it!

Yeah, if you're going to wake up at 3am in the midst of a nightmare, Archie's a good one to wake up to.

[tanacawyr.livejournal.com]

I'll balance it more often now. :-)

It was delicious, so warm and real ... and I was struck especially by two things. One -- that first sentence is very very very ambiguous. I love it when things flip back and forth from intensity of one variety to another sort of intensity.

And it was lovely how you left it ambiguous as to who was having the nightmare! That one surprised me, and then I went back and realized what was going on. I LOVE being surprised like that by something that is nonetheless perfectly consistent.

GORGEOUS!

[commodorified.livejournal.com]

EEEEE, you liked it!

*does penguin dance*

Thanks. I played with the ambiguity a lot -- I really wanted to catch that sense that it might be either of them, any given night.

And playing with the sense of sexual and emotional familiarity and the relatively light touch -- that this isn't some huge thing -- it's just A Thing. As in One Damned Thing After Another.

And, of course, I wanted to deliver Naked Archie. Even if he is slightly -- and affectionately -- grouchy about the whole business. :-)

[ladybretagne.livejournal.com]

Have I mentioned how lovely it is to come across things like this when catching up on LJ? *g* Just utterly gorgeous, warm and sweet without even the remotest hint of saccharin and I do have such a weakness for Archie when he's all content being the one who gets to do the saving a bit and not being saved.

[commodorified.livejournal.com]

*grins hugely*

I'm so glad you liked it!

[ladybretagne.livejournal.com]

Psh, hot snuggly blondes, as if I could ever not like that. *g*

[guede-mazaka.livejournal.com]

Sweetness and light in the dark. It's good to see a take on the trauma Edrington might have. He's portrayed as the most supremely confident and unshakeable character in both canon and fanon, but I have trouble believing that there aren't cracks somewhere.

[commodorified.livejournal.com]

*nods*

One of the thing this fandom has done is gotten me seriously interested in the history of the French-English Wars, which being safely 200 years ago and between countries which are now friends now function largely in pop culture largely as this rather dashing romantic period, suitable for setting costume flicks in.

1793 - 1815. With the odd outbreak of peace. 22 years.

So I tend to assume that by 1800 or so everybody's got some cracks.

Our current working theory is that for him to be an Earl, apparently unmarried, though canon is silent on this point, childless though ditto, and on active service in an unfashionable and fairly heavy-action regiment, he almost HAS to have not been the heir when he joined up. So he's lost a brother, we think, possibly fairly recently.

[guede-mazaka.livejournal.com]

on active service in an unfashionable and fairly heavy-action regiment, he almost HAS to have not been the heir when he joined up. So he's lost a brother, we think, possibly fairly recently

Makes sense.

[kayliemalinza.livejournal.com]

I agree, this makes sense, but there's also something you might have overlooked. According to British Titles of Nobility: An Introduction and Primer to the Peerage (http://www.hmsrichmond.org/avast/titles01.html) and specifically this page (http://www.hmsrichmond.org/avast/titles05.html), the eldest son of a nobleman takes the next highest rank of his father as a courtesy title while his father is still alive. Which means that Edrington might not have inherited his full title yet, and may someday be the Duke or Marquess of wherever (it is unlikely that he would be Duke of Edrington- which is located in Berwickshire, Scotland, by the way).

Imagine the look on Archie's face when he comes back from sea to find his Lobster wearing black and declaring that "By the by, it might be best if you were to refer to me as 'Your Grace'; I am in fact the Duke of Norfolk," to which Archie's most likely response would be to snicker. And of course, our dear Duke Slutbunny can not let such effrontery pass unpunished....

*is slowly buried in a steamy pile of plotbunnies*