open post: in a slightly hazy lounge

[peaklordshen]

After a few false starts, Shen Qingqiu has found a proper place to test out Crowley's BL pollen vape pen.

He posts up in one of the lounges, close enough to the bar that anyone leaving there might find him. He's still in his braid and loose robes - no one else had noticeably started dressing gayer¹ when they took the stuff, intentional or not, so neither will he. He also brings snacks,² and the next book in the Blood at Dusk series, Moonless Midnight, in case it takes a while to kick in, or a while for anyone to come along to prove it has, anyway. If no one finds him here he will go looking, but roaming the Mansion's halls newly homosexual feels like a much more risky prospect than just staying put and seeing what happens.

He arrays himself on a couch, feet tucked up under him (although this might not be immediately apparent due to the robes), Crowley's pen tucked behind one ear so he can make more notes now that he has a glimmer of a chance that Binghe will forgive him,³ and takes a drag on the vape.

He coughs. It's smoke, not pollen—the blooms must be dried and then burned, like with tobacco—and has an odd, kind of greenish flavor. Not unpleasant, but not pleasant, either. He expected it to taste of, like. Cherry blossom, or something. Pink rather than green. Shit, maybe he is a little homophobic.

He takes another drag, and lets the smoke out of his mouth slowly this time, watching it curl up to the ceiling.

By the time anyone finds him, he will be staring unblinking at the opposite wall, book open on his lap to the third page of the first chapter.

[Threads with Sagramore and Luo Binghe are NSFW.]

¹ Please explain what you mean by this, Shen Qingqiu. I'll wait.
² Crowley did tell him to.
³ After he confirms that the pollen works. And goes to find Binghe. And kisses him. And— well. Maybe. After. He can raise the book club idea again?

Comments

[protagonisthalo]

Luo Binghe cannot touch him enough. His hands wander from Shen Qingqiu's face to his waist, and then to his lower back, gripping desperately—two hands are not enough to hold all of him. He kissed this man back when they first met, in the other world, when he was pretending to be the other Luo Binghe—until Shen Qingqiu noticed something wrong and pushed him off. That memory, plus Shen Qingqiu's recent confusing behavior, makes him terrified that his time here is limited. He intended to be gentle with Shen Qingqiu, calibrating himself to Shen Qingqiu's skittishness, but now he cannot hold himself back from kissing him open-mouthed, biting his lower lip, sucking on his tongue. Luo Binghe has been called a slavering, lustful beast by those who disapprove of the size of his harem; this is the first time he's felt like one. "Shizun, ah—"

[peaklordshen]

Shen Qingqiu moans at the onslaught. Everywhere Binghe's hands are touching seems to buzz with a new awareness—as if his body and his body after being touched by Binghe were two entirely different things. He wants, so badly, but it's too much, too fast, to be remade so completely. If this is his only chance for Binghe to touch him like this, it can't—he doesn't want it to be over so soon, in a flurry of desperate touches and juvenile need. Selfishly, he wants to draw it out.

His hands fist harder in Binghe's hair and he tugs him back. "Binghe," he gasps. "Binghe, slow—slow down." He leans in to press a kiss under one of his eyes, then the other, softly. "We have time."

[protagonisthalo]

Luo Binghe gasps at the tug on his hair, and then chokes with emotion at Shen Qingqiu's words. "You won't run away?" He means it to be intimidating, the way he would say it with one of his wives, as more of a command than a question. But it comes out shaky and small, and he flinches at his own words. He doesn't understand what brought Shen Qingqiu to this moment, and there's no telling what might cause him to change his mind.

[peaklordshen]

It's such a preposterous question that Shen Qingqiu almost laughs. Don't you know you're talking to Gay Shen Yuan, right now?? "Why would I go anywhere, when Binghe is right here?" He kisses the end of his nose, then the little bow above his top lip, then the corner of his jaw, the column of his throat, maneuvering him with his hands in his hair and getting more urgent and hotter, wetter, as he goes. "I told you," he breathes against his jaw. "I want to kiss every part of you."

[protagonisthalo]

Luo Binghe buries his face in Shen Qingqiu's neck with a whimper, squeezing his eyes shut and wrapping his arms around him. He's holding Shen Qingqiu too tightly—if Shen Qingqiu weren't a strong cultivator, it could hurt him—but he can't stop himself. The desire he feels is too big to hold, and he is almost scared to discover how it will feel to act on it. When he's unsure, he typically wants to be in control, but Shen Qingqiu has undone him so thoroughly that he wouldn't even know how. "Shizun, please, Shizun—don't hold back, do whatever you want to me. I am at your mercy."

[peaklordshen]

Lightning arcs down Shen Qingqiu's spine, and he gasps. That's--hold on, isn't that the wrong way around?? Shouldn't Luo Binghe be--in all of Shen Qingqiu's fantasies of this,¹ even in Claudius' mocking description of it, he's been the one at Bingge's mercy, not--

But the reality is here, trembling in his arms, and Shen Qingqiu has always been terribly, impossibly weak to the reality of Luo Binghe. He lets Binghe hold him so, so tight for a moment longer, then pulls gently away, just enough to sweep a hand down Binghe's chest, fingers splayed, coming to a halt on the belt of Binghe's robes. "If I am going to do everything I want to do to you, I need to be able to touch more of you," he says, with all the confidence that a vape pen full of boys' love can give him.

¹ The ones he had when he was straight.

[protagonisthalo]

Luo Binghe shudders. He—he doesn't want to do this on the sofa. He has no compunctions about public sex, or sex in odd places, but Shen Qingqiu deserves the best, and a hasty fumble on the sofa isn't the best. But if he suggests they go to a room, it will ruin the moment, and Shen Qingqiu might balk—despite his assurances, it's still hard to believe he won't change his mind.

He gently eases Shen Qingqiu off his lap and stands. When he stripped for Sagramore, he made a show of it, revealing each perfect plane of his physique as though it were the next act. This time he is too nervous—he can barely undo his belt with his clumsy fingers. He strips off his outer and inner robes and folds them carefully, placing them on the carpet—it is nice and plush, perhaps even moreso since he thought of this, the mansion responding to his intentions. Wearing only his loose, open shirt and thin silk trousers, he lays down on the floor, head cushioned on his robes, and looks up at Shen Qingqiu plantively, through his lashes. He has never been self-conscious of his body. On the contrary—he is proud of the size of his manhood, and how it makes women flatter and praise him, how their desire for him grows when they see it. But laid out like this, he wishes for the first time that his arousal was not quite so plainly obvious. He feels another strong rush of heat at his own words as he says, "I am yours for the taking."

[peaklordshen]

Shen Qingqiu watches Binghe undress, feeling like he's dreaming. He's a little worried he might be dreaming, actually, that he'll wake up all of a sudden alone and straight and untouched in his stupid borrowed bedroom with no vape pen and no leads. Why else would Bingge be acting like this, unbearably biddable and bashful, like this is the first time he's ever been undressed in front of anyone? Could this possibly be the stallion protagonist who had fucked hundreds of women for thousands of pages, each one so pleasurably they screamed louder than the last??

Is it just because Shen Qingqiu is a man? Has he--has he evolved, like he'd talked to Claudius about, when confronted with his desire for men?? Is he Stallion/Submissive type, now??

And then Binghe lies down, dressed only in underclothes so thin Shen Qingqiu can nearly see through them, his eyelashes shading his pink cheeks, and between his legs, tenting his trousers--

Shen Qingqiu's mouth is mysteriously no longer dry. He swallows, then swallows again. His hands are moving of their own accord, undoing his belt and slipping his own robes from his shoulders, and then he does the same with his undershirt. He's not thinking about Binghe taking pleasure in his looks--he's barely thinking at all. He just needs--he needs as little between him and Binghe's skin as possible.

In only his trousers, he kneels, next to Binghe's chest. "Binghe," he breathes. "My beautiful Binghe." He cups Binghe's cheek, running his thumb over his lower lip.

[protagonisthalo]

Luo Binghe can hardly bear it. He knows himself to be much more fragile than anyone thinks—more fragile than he would allow anyone to know—but right now he feels himself a porcelain teacup run through with a web of cracks, waiting for one more tap to shatter apart. "I am yours," he says again. "Will you let me have you?"

He wants—But he doesn't want to do it by force or by trickery. Careful not to dislodge Shen Qingqiu's hand, he bites his thumb hard enough to break the skin. He reaches up and mirrors Shen Qingqiu's touch, resting his fingers just under Shen Qingqiu's jaw and brushing a drop of blood over his lip. As a scholar, Shen Qingqiu must know the properties of Heavenly Demon blood. Let him choose if he wants to be truly Luo Binghe's.

[peaklordshen]

Shen Qingqiu takes a long, shaky breath, closing his eyes for a moment. Ah. So it had all been a ploy—Bingge playing bashful, needy, irresistible bait for his own trap, and now the jaws were closing. Of course Bingge was never at his mercy—it was only words, meant to grant him a false sense of power, meant to stir his blood to the point where he would accept this gift—this noose—without a second thought, if it meant he could have him.

But—what was the difference, really? What he'd said to Claudius was true. If Bingge wished to hurt him, even to kill him, it would be easy as breathing, with or without blood parasites. Their power differential was well established by canon, in triumphant, bloody detail. Will you let me have you, Bingge asks, as if Shen Yuan was not delivered into his hands, defenseless and eager in equal measure, the moment he woke up in Proud Immortal Demon Way.

At this last thought his tongue flicks out, almost unconscious, to take Binghe's blood into his mouth. He opens his eyes.

[protagonisthalo]

Luo Binghe shivers at the sight of Shen Qingqiu willingly licking up his blood, deeply moved and unbearably aroused. He was already almost too beautiful to look at before his lips were stained carmine. Luo Binghe will not betray his unspoken trust. He moves his hand around to the back of Shen Qingqiu's neck. If Shen Qingqiu allows it, he will tug him down into a slow, searing kiss.

[peaklordshen]

Shen Qingqiu goes with the motion, immediately, willingly, his mouth opening against Binghe's. He wonders if Binghe has already activated the parasites, for pleasure (for now), or if it's just the pollen—either way he's trembling, and at the first touch of his tongue against Binghe's he's hit with a surge of arousal so intense he whimpers. He steadies himself on Binghe's chest with one hand,¹ the heat and firm muscle of him clear through the thin cloth, and then grips, wishing he had Sha Hualing's claws to shear through it entirely and get at the skin beneath.

¹ Unintentionally, over his heart.

[protagonisthalo]

Shen Qingqiu seems more hesitant now than he did before, some of that shocking confidence and directness now faded. Perhaps what he just revealed—his total devotion to Luo Binghe—has made him shy. The thought, and the way Shen Qingqiu trembles in his arms, inspires an excruciating tenderness in Luo Binghe. At Shen Qingqiu's touch, he immediately strips off his shirt. "Anything you want," he promises. "The whole world should be yours, but I can only give you this piece of it." With those words, he takes Shen Qingqiu's hand and places it back over his heart.

[peaklordshen]

Shen Qingqiu bites his lip, tasting more of Luo Binghe's blood. This is more like what he expected—the sweet, practiced, confident words, delivered a hundred times before to a hundred different women. He should be—be swooning, melting, playing his part—and he is, he feels lightheaded with want as more of Binghe's skin is revealed. But—there's a strange sourness in the back of his throat. It's the parasites, maybe, giving an odd cast to the usual metallic tang of blood.

He focuses on the skin under his hand, instead; his angle is awkward, so he lets the pollen or the parasites take over and swings one leg up and over Binghe's body so he's straddling him, letting him get both hands on Binghe's chest. He runs his fingertips, then his nails over Bingge's smooth, soft skin, squeezing the swell of his pecs. He's always admired Bingge for being the perfect ideal of masculine strength, in a straight way, but now he gets to admire it in a gay way, with his hands, and—he shifts back, a little, so he can touch Bingge's abs, and feels something brush the curve of his ass.

His face goes so hot he thinks he might literally burst into flame, one hand flying up to cover his mouth. He didn't—he hadn't meant to—

[protagonisthalo]

Luo Binghe throws his head back with a throaty moan. He shifts his hips, rubbing against Shen Qingqiu again, burning hot from the way Shen Qingqiu is fondling his chest. "The way you tease me," he groans. "I have never known such desire." He has said so before, dozens of times, but never meant it until now. "I am subject to your whims. We may only kiss, if it's what you want—it would be torture, to touch you and not have you, but a sweeter torture I could not devise. I would rather such torture from you than satisfaction from anyone else. But if you'll let me, I..." He rocks his hips up again, closing his eyes and exhaling deeply at the friction. "I would take you to heights of pleasure you have never known."

[peaklordshen]

Shen Qingqiu's first instinct is to feel offended. Only kiss?? He hadn't done all that research, tracked down this damn pollen¹ to have Binghe like this, straddling him nearly naked on the floor of a lounge, and only kiss. Binghe must still be playing up the shy sweetness for some reason, even though he's clearly also upping Shen Qingqiu's pleasure with the parasites. Every rock of Binghe's hips has his whole body fizzing, and—he notes with enormous embarrassment—he's so hard he's leaking, the front of his thin trousers going translucent.

He lets himself fold forward, taking Binghe's face between his hands. The motion also brings his dick into contact with Binghe's abs, and he ends up making a strangled sort of sound, eyelashes fluttering, before he can gather any of the words he intended to say. "Ngh, haa. Of—of course I'll let you," he manages, finally. "Take—take what you will of me." A memory, flickering, of a passing thought he'd had while straight, that blossoms into full color here. "My emperor."

¹ Crowley handed it to him.

[protagonisthalo]

Luo Binghe growls and rolls them over, settling on top of Shen Qingqiu and grinding more purposefully against him. Now that Shen Qingqiu has expressed his commitment¹, he is more assured, and feeling Shen Qingqiu's obvious interest only solidifies that. Sagramore was right. Shen Qingqiu does want him. He can feel how hard Shen Qingqiu's heart is beating, both through the skin and through his awareness of the blood in his veins.

Luo Binghe is glad, now, that he was able to practice this with Sagramore, both ways. Without that experience, he is not sure he would have the patience to prepare Shen Qingqiu as much as necessary. Now he knows how intimidating it is to take someone else inside—and he saw what a task it was for Sagramore to take him.

He leans down and takes Shen Qingqiu's bottom lip between his teeth, biting it very gently, and then licks off the remnants of his blood. "Won't my wife finish undressing for me?" he murmurs against Shen Qingqiu's mouth.

¹Everyone understands that that's what just happened.

[peaklordshen]

Shen Qingqiu gasps, arching up into Bingge's chest. He works his hands down in between them to struggle out of his pants, wriggling and undignified and unable to care, too desperate to have nothing between them but skin.

Wife. So Bingge had followed where he was leading, and they were firmly in a sexy roleplay situation, now. He winds his hands in Binghe's hair and kisses him again, wanton and moaning, like he would if he were really his next wife, like he would if he were gay, like he would if he were able to do what he wants—the layers of fantasy are getting confused, now, in the haze of pollen and arousal. He kisses him, and kisses him, and lets his bare legs fall open to either side of Binghe's hips.

[protagonisthalo]

Luo Binghe quickly strips off his own pants, not breaking the kiss for a moment.¹ He breathes hot into Shen Qingqiu's mouth, then presses biting kisses along his jaw to just under his ear before returning to his lips, marveling at how willing Shen Qingqiu is, how shameless. His sweet, shy nature drew Luo Binghe to him in the first place, but faced with a Shen Qingqiu who writhes under him and begs for more, Luo Binghe is no less charmed—on the contrary, he is going out of his mind. He wants to properly join with Shen Qingqiu, but he can't help but grind down against him first, just to know how it feels bare. It's hot and damp between them, and Luo Binghe could finish just like this, just pressing against Shen Qingqiu and barely moving his hips.

He scrambles for the salve he keeps in his storage ring, again dropping it in his nerves—it tumbles to the floor beside Shen Qingqiu's head. He grabs it quickly, flushing somehow even hotter, and smears some on his fingers. "Have you—done this before—?"

¹Obviously Luo Binghe knows how to take off his pants without breaking a kiss. Who do you think he is?

[peaklordshen]

Shen Qingqiu thinks his brain might literally blank out at the feeling of the Heavenly Pillar thrusting against him. He doesn't know what Binghe is doing with his hands; can't process anything except hot and hard and big big big, wants to reach down and wrap his hand around it like he had with Sagramore, is terrified to reach down and wrap his hand around it like he did with Sagramore because then he'll know how big. He'll probably need both hands.

Binghe—Binghe said something. He focuses. When he processes it, another shock goes through him. Binghe thinks he—with who?? Surely he can't think original Shen Qingqiu did this with anyone. He shudders, shakes his head, clings to Binghe's back with possessive hands. "Never," he manages, "never," and then, face blazing, admits, "I've never even, um. Touched. There."

[protagonisthalo]

Ah, he's perfect, he's perfect. Luo Binghe cannot stop himself from kissing all over Shen Qingqiu's face, overwhelmed by the way he is both eager and bashful, seductive one moment and demure the next, as though his natural timidity cannot fully assert itself over how badly he wants Luo Binghe. To know that he is unspoiled—that he has never wanted anyone badly enough to do this before, to even touch himself, but he wants to with Luo Binghe—for a moment his throat closes with emotion, and he can do nothing but shut his eyes and tremble and breathe against Shen Qingqiu.

"I'll care for you," he vows. "I'll make it good, I'll—I will treasure you as you deserve. I will revere you." How many blushing maidens has he deflowered before? He can't recall any of their names or faces, and he doesn't care to. It has all been practice for this moment.

They are pressed so close, their bodies so achingly responsive to each other, that it feels easy to touch him. As though he has always known Shen Qingqiu's body—as though being with him is more natural, more right than being alone. Luo Binghe slides his hand down and presses his slick fingertips where they should be. He intends simply to rub a little, to get Shen Qingqiu accustomed to the feeling, but it feels so hot and tempting that he cannot help letting one finger just barely slip inside.

[peaklordshen]

Shen Qingqiu tenses at the intrusion, the strangeness of it. Odd-shouldn't the BL pollen take away any discomfort?? Shouldn't it have some kind of, of relaxing and lubricating side effect, or something, to let Bingge slide inside no problem?¹

It's not that it feels bad-- it's slick, and intriguing, and he's still pressed so close to Binghe that when he squirms away from the intrusion it means squirming into the hot, long line of him, and that makes him gasp and dig his nails into Bingge's back. But--if a fingertip feels like this, how is he ever going to take the pillar???

¹ Unfortunately you need the more specific and rare varietal, omega pollen, for this.

[protagonisthalo]

Luo Binghe stills his fingers instantly when Shen Qingqiu tenses. He should have guessed that Shen Qingqiu would be nervous. Luo Binghe would happily spend an hour getting him ready, if necessary, but he has an advantage here that he didn't have with Sagramore. "You're beautiful," Luo Binghe murmurs against his face, resting his weight on his forearm so he can tangle his unoccupied hand in Shen Qingqiu's hair. He kisses his cheek. "I'll—Let me activate my blood. Can I? It will make it easier."

[peaklordshen]

Activate——?? What the hell do you mean, Luo Binghe??? Haven't you already activated them?? Haven't they been sending pleasure coursing through my body since the moment my tongue touched your blood????

Still—there's something so sweet about him asking, as if he thinks Shen Qingqiu wouldn't be able to tell he's already done it. He kisses Luo Binghe's cheek in return, then his mouth. "Binghe needs no permission."

[protagonisthalo]

It's only the confirmation of what Shen Qingqiu promised when he licked Luo Binghe's blood from his lips, but it still strikes Luo Binghe directly in his heart. Shen Qingqiu has truly given all of himself to Luo Binghe. In all Luo Binghe's lands, with all his riches, this is by far the finest thing he has ever possessed. He is weak with the responsibility of it—the desire to make Shen Qingqiu happy and safe, so he will not regret these gestures of precious trust.

He activates his blood parasites as gently as possible. It can be an overwhelming feeling, even in pleasure. He keeps the sensation at the softest thrum and concentrates on allowing Shen Qingqiu's body to relax, to let him in.

But—there's something wrong. Shen Qingqiu's blood moves through his veins a little too sluggishly, his qi not as light and abundant as Luo Binghe expected from someone of his cultivation level. It takes him a moment—he is distracted by carefully pressing his finger a little deeper, letting Shen Qingqiu judge if it's any easier—but then he recognizes it. He knows this ailment; he has cured at least ten of his wives of it. It is the demonic poison Without-A-Cure.¹

Luo Binghe's mind races. When was Shen Qingqiu poisoned? Surely not here. Luo Binghe is the only demon here from their world—except for Crowley. Would Crowley betray him thus? It's possible—Luo Binghe trusts no one, especially not fellow demons—but Shen Qingqiu could have been poisoned before he came here, as well. Not many people would have high enough cultivation to stave off the poison for so long, but Shen Qingqiu might. He presses against Shen Qingqiu's entrance—not going any deeper but simply curling his finger to make it feel like more—and kisses the side of his mouth, both desperately aroused and worried.

At least the cure is close at hand. If Luo Binghe follows through on what Shen Qingqiu has asked for, Shen Qingqiu will already be healed. He wants to know how this happened, but if someone did attack Shen Qingqiu or hurt him on purpose, he doesn't want to make Shen Qingqiu think of it now, when Luo Binghe is trying to bring him only pleasure. He will cure Shen Qingqiu, and they can discuss it later.

¹It is also the demonic poison without a cure. He can think both the capitalized and lower case version at the same time.