Coronation

[featheredflames]

It is all far too much attention for Joshua's liking.

He knew this was how it would be, that there would be a certain amount of fussing the be expected...but this was beyond the scope of acceptable fussing surely. So much unnecessary commotion over a fitting of ceremonial robes that he wouldn't wear more than a handful of times at that... Would it not be better to spend time focusing on the clothing he would be draped in when he finally dawned his father's mantle? The day-to-day wear that he would need to sport as Archduke of Rosaria.

That would come later, in time, he had been reassured. This outfit would get at least a few days of wear out of it. The ceremony was to last more than a singular evening, festivities dragging on for nearly a week after the event of the coronation itself. Already Joshua feels weary at the thought. Fancy suppers and meeting with dignitaries were in his future but right now his present reality was a miserable one. Fabric is cinched around his waist as measurements are taken and pins are adjusted. He feels like a doll as he's fitted, made to stand for bells on end. Founder he could only hope that some semblance of reprieve would find him soon, hopefully before his knees gave out...

Swallowing he stares out the window, doing his best not to move as the tailors do their work as quickly as they can. It would be unfair if he told them to stop - they were only doing as they had been instructed to, to rework and refit the robes his father wore on his crowning day. Joshua cannot help but think they don't suit him - Clive would wear (and fit!) them far better than he. Yet it was tradition...and while he may be able to escape the tailors ere long, there was no escaping protocol and the duty that loomed over him.

Comments

[featheredflames]

Clive may not be intending to put on a show, but Joshua watches him as he strips with baited breath, eyes slowly widening as more and more layers are removed. Sure, this isn't the first time he's seen his brother without a shirt, but that does not mean he cannot appreciate what he's already bared witness to.

Clive is all muscle, perfectly sculpted in every way that matters. He would have to be utterly mad to not find him attractive. What could be more attractive than the man he admires ever so much?

"On the contrary." He feels giddy, stomach fluttering once Clive draws close again. It is not an invasion of space, not when he welcomes him in without hesitation. Hands move to trace down Clive's arms, reveling in the set firmness of them. Oh it is unfair just how striking he is. "You are frustratingly handsome."

[flamebrand]

A sideways tip of his head at 'frustratingly', and he chuckles about it. Honestly, he thinks he looks bedraggled more often than not, but if Joshua is happy with what he sees... he needn't reflect on it any further.

"If you think so, I won't complain."

Coming from the most beautiful young man Clive has ever seen, 'handsome' is a ringing endorsement. Still smiling, he moves to undo the laces and buckles keeping Joshua put-together, and starts loosening his tunic to carefully pull over his brother's head. Slowly and methodically, like unwrapping something precious.

"Would Your Grace prefer that I try to tame my hair again after his coronation?"

His Shield should probably try to present himself tidily, for appearance's sake. He laughs.

"Or maybe I should shear it all off, like Lord Murdoch."

[featheredflames]

He allows Clive the freedom to undress him as he pleases, lifting his arms to cooperate as his tunic is unbuttoned and peeled off him. Part of him is impatient, wants Clive to pull his clothing off quick and without any regard for it at all...but that is not the kind of person Clive is. Everything he does when it comes to Joshua is meticulous and done so with the utmost care. How lucky he truly is to have a brother like Clive.

The sudden suggestion about Clive's hair has Joshua taken aback, eyes wide as he looks at his brother as if what he's just suggested is egregious.

"Founder no, please do not."

Quickly he reaches out with fingers to run them through Clive's shaggy locks, giving them a playful tug.

"I like your hair the way it is. Do not take shears to it."

[flamebrand]

"It's growing more moplike by the day."

He notes, as he nuzzles his head against the fingers currently tugging his locks into submission.

"But it does give you something to hold."

Slightly mischievous, as he bends forward to kiss the crest of Joshua's now-bare shoulder. His lips slide to his brother's collarbone, his breath dancing along his sternum. As if he's considering dipping lower, and lower still, until he has his mouth against what he knows must be Joshua's pretty cock.

[featheredflames]

Cheeky.

His face flares as Clive teases him, finding it impossibly adorable as his brother nuzzles into his hand. Yes, it does give him something to hold, and the implication behind Clive's words does not go unnoticed. Still, he lets his brother do as he wishes, kissing his shoulder and down his front until he reaches his trousers and oh...

Founder, please help him.

"...Do you want to put your mouth there?"

He hasn't bathed yet, and while he hadn't been swinging a sword about, he still cannot help but be sure.

[flamebrand]

"If you're asking about wanting," is the light, sincere answer, "yes."

There's no shortage of unspeakable things he'd like to do with Joshua, and taking his brother in his mouth is only one of them. With that said, however, he sits back up again to tangle Joshua into another gentle embrace.

"But I think I want to hold you, tonight."

Something a little more intimate, something that feels less like servicing and more like fulfilling this long-denied need to press close. If they're going to cross more lines, he'd like it to be done with affection.

"Is that alright?"

[featheredflames]

"It is more than just all right."

Clive embraces him and Joshua is quick to squeeze him back, burying his face in his brother's shoulder. How could a man be so tender and loving? How was he so blessed to have Clive in his life?

"It can be like when we were younger..." Albeit with far more scandalous intentions. "I want you to hold me Clive."

[flamebrand]

When they were younger. Clive thinks back to when they were just children, to memories of Joshua tucked against his front and breathing softly in sleep, free of fever and pain. Hallowed, precious moments they carved out for each other when the adults in Rosalith left them to their loneliness, to cold beds and soft coughing.

Their world has changed drastically since then; yet still, this remains the most sacred thing Clive has ever known. This gentleness between them, the luxury of being seen and understood.

"Come here."

A soft whisper, as a warning. They fall onto clean bedsheets, side by side and front to front, and Clive tucks Joshua closer, tighter.

His precious brother. His one and only. Every minute of every day, Clive thanks fate that Joshua was born.

[featheredflames]

Clive is warm.

Chest to chest he feels the warmth of his brother's skin radiate into him as he shares his embrace, drawn into it and as close as physically possible. Already he feels at ease and at peace in Clive's arms, to be held much like he had all those years before. Joshua wonders if it would always be this way. He decides that yes, it would be - regardless of how old they both got, he would always be Clive's little brother and Clive would be his everything in turn.

"I could stay like this forever."

[flamebrand]

"Would that we could."

Warm and held and safe. The world is nowhere near kind enough for that, really, and the both of them are far too active in spirit to be idle for too long, but― a nice thought, anyway, to imagine them tangled and seen until the end of their days. With Joshua, it's the sort of pleasant fantasy Clive can get lost in.

Lips press against soft hair, and the warm flat of Clive's palm traces along the lines of Joshua's body, from waist to back to shoulderblades, mapping him with gentle touches. Each dip and curve committed to memory, given attention with fingertips and calluses. His brother really is the most beautiful man Clive has ever seen.

"Even forever with you wouldn't be enough."

[featheredflames]

It wouldn't be. There's something about Clive's words that hit deep as he snuggles closer, letting his eyes fall shut with a sigh. He focuses instead on warm hands and gentle caresses, not the finality of their lives. Joshua cannot help but worry that his newfound responsibilities will make the time they share with one another less than it already is, but there is no reason to fret until it comes to pass.

"It seems far too finite for my liking."

Out comes a huff as he nudges his nose into Clive's chest. They were supposed to indulge in one another, but the magnetic draw of innocent comfort is far too alluring to ignore it seems.

[flamebrand]

Joshua will be even busier with his responsibilities as Archduke, and Clive will inevitably be sent away to Dhalmek frontlines or Sanbrequois borders, where Ifrit will loom tall over Rosarian enemies. 'Forever' is a pretty fantasy, but it's one they can both share in this small, intimate space, away from others' eyeshot or earshot. Their taboo, their secret.

Joshua gets comfortable, and Clive hardly wants to disturb his brother's peace. Indulgence can wait if his brother wants just this; they've been deprived of even something as innocent as this for ages now.

"We'll make the most of our time." A reassurance, as he reaches for the bedcovers to draw up and around his brother's bare skin, keeping him insulated. "...Are you tired?"

[featheredflames]

The truth of the matter is that their lives are going to change very shortly, and while Joshua had the yolk of his father's responsibilities thrust upon him already, they would be all encompassing once he was crowned head of their country. He would be kept busy and Clive would be sent off and away from his side. The thought is a miserable one, one that has him instinctively clinging tighter to his brother.

They'll make the most of their time, as Clive has said and reassures, tucking them both in. It's so warm. He feels so safe...but he doesn't feel tired.

"No, not yet. Besides, it would be a shame to go to sleep right now when I am still eager to delight in you."

[flamebrand]

A Shield of Rosaria, having to do his duty. Once Joshua is Archduke, his name will extend outside of Rosalith and beyond her borders, and it will be Clive's responsibility to see to it that Joshua can rule without worry. This is how he'll protect his brother from here on out― not just from his bed or by his side.

He'll cross that bridge when he has to. (Soon.) For now, he's content to listen to Joshua's immediate needs, and eases into the idea that his brother might be amenable to something more than a harmless cuddle after all. A low half-laugh, and Clive gently dislodges Joshua's face from his chest to tip him up into a kiss again, slow and deep and affectionate just for the sake of it.

"...Permission to touch you, then?"

When their lips part, punctuated by a reach downwards, and a featherlight brush of his knuckles against the front of Joshua's soft trousers.

[featheredflames]

The kiss reignites the desire that had been lit earlier when Clive had pressed against him in the stables. Eagerly he kisses his brother back as Clive shows him tender affection before asking for permission to touch him.

With wide, sweet eyes he smiles back at his brother, swallowing with a delighted shiver as Clive touches him between his legs.

"Permission granted, Brother. I will happily accept your will."

[flamebrand]

His will. The term is highfalutin for what essentially boils down to Clive's basest desires, but the fact that Joshua phrases it as such makes his heart swell in his chest. An acknowledgment of their agency, and the choice they're making with every line they cross. What Clive is doing is unforgivable, but done by his own volition.

It's sweet of Joshua to remind him. Yes, this is Clive exercising his will, and yes, Clive will choose Joshua every single time.

"You'll do more than accept it, I hope."

Like, say, derive some pleasure out of it. Another kiss, more brief this time, and he starts to shimmy Joshua out of both his trousers and his underwear, gently pulling them down to his knees before he lets his hand wander. Clive's touch floats from a soft inner thigh and then upwards, ghosting fingertips along the outline of Joshua's cock to gauge his interest.

It's unbelievable, still, that this is happening. That he's been permitted. That he's laying here with Joshua beside him, open and sweet and willing to let Clive do more than he ever thought possible. Just the idea of that is enough to make Clive's breath warm and the heat between his own legs strain against his smallclothes; god, it must be wicked to be so attracted to his brother, but he wants what he wants.

[featheredflames]

It may be a sin but Joshua is more than willing to indulge in sin if it is to lead his brother to contentment and joy. Small clothes and trousers pulled down, Joshua does not shy away from his brother's touch. Instead he meets his gaze in full, spreading his legs to welcome his touch further. Already with the gentle caress to his cock he can feel himself begin to harden, chest constricting as he tries to keep himself from smiling too wide at his brother.

"More than accept...oh Clive I will enjoy you to the fullest. I promise you that."

Let them not be bogged down my societal expectations and understandings of what is wrong and right. Behind these doors they are free of such chains and answer to none but their own hearts.

[flamebrand]

Oh, that smile. Clive folds like paper whenever he sees it, feels his heart flutter when he realizes that it's for him. Like flint and tinder, sparking and bright. He thinks to say, briefly, that Joshua will be the death of him, but even as a flirt-adjacent tease it still rings a little too close to home, so―

―none of that. Instead, his fingers close around Joshua's outline gently, enjoying the feeling of his brother slowly filling out, getting warmer against his palm. It's only gentle petting at first, a not-quite-friction to ease them into this new intimacy they're chasing. Thumbing, touching, tracing. Very well-mannered, despite Clive's arousal making his breaths heat with every new inch of Joshua he's permitted to explore.

"I could spend all night touching you," he murmurs. A little sex-brained, toeing just along the line of affection-stupid. His erection brushes Joshua's thigh, and he shivers at the feeling of it.

[featheredflames]

It is all too easy to grin around his brother, especially when the curve of his own lips triggers Clive to smile in turn. It's such a lovely sight indeed, and to know that he is the cause of it causes Joshua's heart to warm in ways he cannot begin to put word to. As he is stroked and begins to harden under his brother's touch, Joshua groans encouragingly, reaching out to smooth his own fingers over Clive's face and hair.

His comment has him giggling despite himself, the sound airy and light as he bites down on his lower lip, lashes low as he meets Clive's gaze.

"Then we are blessed to have all night, are we not?" He shifts, tucking strands of hair behind Clive's ear, flicking the earring they once shared to tease. "I am yours for the evening, dear brother."

[flamebrand]

If Joshua's smile set Clive alight, it's his brother's laugh that truly undoes him. Light and buoyant, it's the sound that Clive has always held to when the world felt bleakest― the sound that Clive would fight tooth and nail to protect and preserve.

And fuck, if Joshua isn't a vision stretched out on bedsheets. Pale skin slightly flushed from arousal, kiss-bitten lips reddened and inviting. Clive leans in to press his mouth against his brother's smile, and tips into the feel of fingers righting the haphazard mess of his black hair.

A mirrored laugh, when he feels that flick.

"You spoil me."

Clive feels spoiled, certainly. A hum, and he shifts to finally pull his own arousal from his smallclothes, trying to swallow down how shamefully hard he's gotten just from petting Joshua, then slots himself against his brother in an attempt to grind their cocks together, sharing heat and friction.

"You've had me on the edge all night."

[featheredflames]

"I think I am the one who is far more spoiled, Clive."

Out comes a groan as soon as he feels the hard heat of his brother's cock against his own, blue eyes as wide as saucers as he meets his gaze. Was such contact supposed to feel so good? Little had been done between them already and yet...

"Founder Clive...your cock is..."

Big is what he wants to say, but he bites his lower lip instead, swallowing a keen as he grinds back against him.

"You think you were the only one on edge this evening? You affect me more than you think."

[flamebrand]

Hearing cock in Joshua's delicate voice does something to Clive that he can't describe. His breath hitches at the sound of it, then trails off into a soft moan; an impatient shift of his waist and hips, and he grips his brother's waist to better position both of their bodies.

Fuck, if Joshua doesn't feel perfect. Their build and shape are disparate, opposites in every way, but the way they fit and move together makes sparks fly up and along Clive's spin. He can count on one hand the amount of times he's felt another human's skin on his, but this rewrites everything Clive knows about intimacy, about what it can and should be like.

A low hiss through his teeth, and he presses closer. He licks his lips, then lick's Joshua's lips.

"You were perfectly poised during dinner," Clive huffs, laugh-adjacent. "I should know― I never took my eyes off of you."

[featheredflames]

Oh it is sinful to feel Clive grip his hips and waist in such a fashion, palms big and rough against his soft middle and bones. Yet Joshua delights in it, wants more of it even, and how fiendish of his brother to lick at his lips like a wanting dog.

He groans Clive's name, his own hiss sounding like the simmer of low flame.

"You were watching me?" Of course he was. Stupid question to ask. Then again, he feels pretty stupid right now, the more his cock rubs against his brother's. "I suppose I am better at suppressing my wants than I thought."

[flamebrand]

Clive doesn't have much of a functioning brain left anymore, pressed front-against-front with Joshua like this, trading breaths and jests, but he tries. Another exhale, almost a chuckle, and he angles himself so that his next grind slicks all the way over Joshua's pretty cock, hips moving to the rhythm of a slow, methodical fuck.

No penetration, though. He promised, and Clive can be good for his brother. Only for his brother.

"I wonder what it would take to fluster you."

A bit of a challenge. Joshua is criminally adorable like this, and Founder knows that Clive doesn't exactly want to share it with others if he can help it, but.

Still. The hungry part of Clive that wants to treat Joshua like a lover is curious, and it makes him move faster, chase his pleasure more insistently.

[featheredflames]

Is he not already flustered? Joshua cannot help but give Clive a bewildered look, arms hooked around his brother's neck as his cheeks flare hot. He shifts beneath him, huffing out a moan as his legs spread further apart. Why had he asked Clive not to fuck him in full till he had been coronated? Why had he decided to place such a restriction on them both?

Oh he is a fool, but he will endure his own foolish decision.

"You already have..." A tug, coaxing Clive close so he can kiss him, needy. "Every touch and press of your body to mine is like flint and sparks to my core."