Fire and Blood

Chapter 6: Old habits.

Summary: Lizbeth and Astarion wake up feeling genuinely happy after a night together. The group tries to maintain normalcy during breakfast despite the previous day's events. Gale shares his progress in translating relics, and Astarion struggles with his feelings. Later, Gale awkwardly brings up the previous night's events, leading to a conversation about relationships and unusual pairings. The chapter ends with Astarion and Lizbeth sharing an intimate moment again, but Astarion quickly shifts to his usual persona, leaving Lizbeth conflicted.

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Chapter 6: Old Habits

Lizbeth felt happy, genuinely happy for the first time in years. She smiled and hummed to herself as she went about her morning routine.

Astarion did too. Despite the residual guilt and unease over his actions, he couldn't deny how right it all felt. Breakfast preparations moved along smoothly as they worked side by side, their bodies brushing against each other accidentally, often enough to send tiny shivers of desire through them.

Soon enough, the rest of the group woke up, and they gathered around the campfire for breakfast, trying hard to maintain a semblance of normalcy despite yesterday's events.

"So I discovered something new last night while some of you were sleeping," Gale started, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively at the pair.

Astarion tensed visibly, bracing himself for the inevitable questioning that followed Gale's remark. But to his relief, it never came. Instead, everyone ate in silence, their minds elsewhere. Only Karlach snickered under their breath occasionally, casting sidelong glances at you and Astarion.

Gale continued unperturbed to discuss his progress on translating the relics.

Astarion focused on his food, pushing it around on his plate, attempting to push aside the thoughts of what happened between him and Lizbeth last night. He couldn't deny that something had changed; something unfamiliar yet starkly honest had blossomed inside him—something he hadn't felt in centuries, if ever.

"I think I've cracked the code," Gale announced excitedly, holding up a parchment with illegible symbols scrawled across it. "This could be the key to understanding these artifacts fully."

"Wonderful, I knew you could do it, Gale!" Lizbeth was so proud of her friend for figuring it out. She smiled at Astarion, excited for the discovery.

Astarion nodded casually, his eyes avoiding hers briefly before returning to Gale. "Indeed," he murmured, too preoccupied with his thoughts to engage fully in the conversation around him.

The day progressed, and Gale filled the group in meticulous detail on his extensive research and discoveries until well into the evening. As they started preparing their evening meal, Gale cleared his throat awkwardly and pulled Astarion and Lizbeth aside, "I think... Let's discuss last night's events."

Lizbeth blushed but acted nonchalant, "Oh, and what events would those be?"

Astarion groaned internally, dreading this conversation, but knew it was inevitable. "Uh... well," he fumbled for words, his gaze flickering between Lizbeth and Gale before settling on the fire pit. "We... shared a tent last night, and, um... well..." He cleared his throat awkwardly. "You know..." His hands gestured helplessly in frustration, trying to convey his thoughts without outright stating what everyone already knew, but he quickly gave up. "Well, we had sex, of course." Surprisingly, Gale burst out laughing. He quickly covered his mouth with his hand, noting Lizbeth's annoyed gaze.

Lizbeth was red with embarrassment and anger, "There is nothing wrong about what we shared. We are two consenting adults," she huffed at Gale.

Gale chuckled, setting down his knife. "It's unusual for a vampire and a mortal to share such intimacy without dire consequences." He raised an eyebrow at Astarion. "So, what changed your mind? Was it something I said earlier?"