See How Snow Falls (The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, Reimagined)

Chapter 9: Dancing In The Moonlight

"Crow! There you are! You missed Maude Ivory's performance, it was incredible though."
Sejanus greeted Crow cheerily, clearly slightly tipsy.
"I wish I'd seen it."
Crow murmured, smiling weakly.
"Have you been drinking?"
They asked, noticing his extra cheery disposition and the empty glass in his hand.
"Just a little. Do you want something?"
Sejanus offered.
"Sure. Do they have whiskey?"
In that moment Crow just wanted something, anything to get their mind off of the past few days.
"I think so. I'll be right back, stay here."
Sejanus disappeared into the crowd, as cheerful as ever, before Crow could even begin to protest being left alone. After a few moments they felt a familiar, cold hand land heavily on their shoulder.
"Crow."
Coriolanus greeted them.
"Corri- Coriolanus. Please leave me alone."
Crow practically begged, even going so far as to call him by his full name for the first time since they had met.
"I can't."
Coriolanus inhaled sharply at the use of his full name. It felt wrong coming from Crow.
"Crow I can't."
His grip on their shoulder tightened as he turned them around to face him.
        "Corri, please, I can't be around you right now. I need time. I need you to leave me alone."
Crow pleaded, staring up at Coriolanus, eyes swollen from crying and shining with desperation.
        "Fine."
Coriolanus hissed, holding Crow's shoulders in a bruising grip.
        "I'll leave you alone. But don't say I didn't warn you."
        "Thank you."
Crow murmured lowly, once again holding back tears.
        "Of course, little crow."
Coriolanus smirked, taking their face in his hands.
        "Remember, I only do this because I care about you."
With those words Coriolanus left, disappearing into the crowd. Crow felt sick and taken advantage of. They felt like his hands had stained their skin, permanently. Coriolanus probably had the cleanest hands of anyone in District Twelve, but even so, Crow felt dirty.
        "Crow! I got your whiskey!"
Sejanus appeared, seemingly from nowhere, holding a glass out to them. Without much thought, Crow grabbed the glass and downed it quickly.
        "Can I get another?"
They asked tiredly.
        "Another one? Isn't that a little much for you?"
Sejanus raised his eyebrows in shock.
        "Let me have some fun, Sejanus."
They replied, smirking.
         "Whiskey's good for treating a cold anyway. I am ill after all."
After a moment's consideration Sejanus acquiesced and got them another drink. After their second drink, Crow was clearly inebriated, hanging onto Sejanus, stumbling around and giggling. It was nice. They almost felt better. Almost. They couldn't get rid of that dirty feeling deep in their chest, making them feel somehow ruined. Maybe it was the whiskey influencing them, or maybe it was the sheer power of their desperation, but another idea came to mind, and Crow was quick to set it into motion.
        "Sejanus, I wanna show you something."
They tugged on his arm, distracting him from his discussion with the bartender.
        "What's up?"
Sejanus asked them.
         "I wanna show you something outside."
Crow giggled nervously, dragging him toward the door.
         "Outside? In the dark?"
Sejanus questioned Crow, following them out the door nonetheless.
         "It's a full moon, so it'll be pretty."
Crow replied, preoccupied with trying to walk as fast as possible without stumbling in their inebriated state.
        "What will be pretty?"
Sejanus asked, confused, and a little annoyed.
         "The field, my love, the field!"
Crow replied as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
         "The fields are that way though."
Sejanus muttered, pointing behind himself in confusion.
         "Not those fields! This field is special, you'll see. I brought Corri here once to pick flowers for Lucy Gray-"
Crow suddenly cut themself off, becoming quiet at their own mention of Coriolanus, remembering the events of the past few days and that night.
         "Oh, I see."
Sejanus replied, somewhat oblivious to Crow's sudden change in mood. The two walked in silence for a bit with only the crunch of leaves and the occasional stumble from Crow, who Sejanus always caught, of course, filling the air. After a while longer, the field was in sight, and Sejanus gasped in shock. It was beautiful under the dim light of the full moon. Wildflowers were everywhere and while some buds were closed, others were open, drinking up the soft moonlight.
         "Isn't it beautiful?"
Crow whispered, turning to Sejanus.
          "It is."
Sejanus murmured, looking around in awe, before his gaze settled on Crow.
         "Y'know what else is beautiful?"
He asked them, smiling softly and holding them by the waist, pulling them in close.
         "Hm?"
Crow hummed in reply, staring at him adoringly.
        "You. You're beautiful Crow."
Sejanus continued, smiling softly as he leaned in to kiss them. For just a moment Crow was startled by the kiss, but they quickly relaxed, kissing Sejanus back fervently. Within mere moments Crow was fumbling with the top button of Sejanus's shirt.
"Take it off."
They murmured, out of breath and desperate.
"Please."
They added after a moment, working on the second button.
"Okay."
Sejanus murmured helping them to unbutton his shirt and letting it fall to the ground before moving on to unbutton Crow's. As the cool night air touched their skin, they shivered, leaning into the now-shirtless Sejanus for warmth. Wordlessly the two walked further into the flower field, sitting down beneath a bush covered in soft purple flowers.
"I want you."
Crow whispered. Sejanus stared at them in the dimly lit field, eyes brimming with lust as he pulled them into his lap, kissing them passionately. Crow let out a muffled sound of shock as his hands traveled lower, cupping their ass firmly.
"I need you."
He pulled away with a smirk, murmuring in response before starting to nibble and suck on their neck, eliciting small squeals and giggles as the sensitive flesh slowly turned purple and red.
"Sejanus!"
They half-laughed, half-moaned, squirming in his grip as he left a particularly large hickey on the side of their throat.
"I won't be able to hide these!"
They complained half-heartedly. Sejanus chuckled, smiling at them softly.
"Too bad. At least then everyone will know who you belong with."
Crow smiled back at him, recognizing the autonomy he had left them in his words. He said they belonged with him, Corri always said they belonged to him. That's why they loved Sejanus. He didn't expect them to lose themself to love him. He never had.
        "I love you."
Crow said, leaning their forehead against his.
        "I love you too."
Sejanus replied, pulling them into another kiss. The two broke apart, flushed and panting. In that moment they seemed to have the same idea, but Crow hesitated, asking softly
"Sejanus, are we going to-"
"Yes. I mean- if you want to-
He stumbled over his words before finally settling on
"I want to. If you want to."
"I do."
Crow smiled, their face just barely lit by the moon above them. They shed the rest of their clothes, fumbling over buttons, crumpling fabric and pulling at seams in their drunken state. And Sejanus followed suit, unbuttoning his pants and removing them alongside his underwear.
"Crow. You're so... beautiful."
Sejanus whispered, before reaching forward and encircling them with his arms, pulling their naked body onto his.
"So beautiful"
He repeated, running his hands down their sides, taking in every inch of the soft, untouched skin. Crow blushed fiercely at his words, remaining silent but leaning down to gently pepper kisses across his collar bones. Sejanus smiled softly at the almost ticklish sensation, before flipping the two over so he was on top of Crow. It was at this moment that Crow became aware of his boner pressing against them, and if they had been blushing before, they were as red as a ripe strawberry now.
"Sejanus..."
They murmured
"I need you."
They continued.
"Okay."
Sejanus replied simply, adjusting himself on top of them. With a deep breath to steady himself, Sejanus slowly inserted himself into Crow.
"Ow. Holy fuck, ow."
Crow whimpered at the unfamiliar burning sensation.
"Are you okay? Do you need me to stop?"
Sejanus asked, immediately concerned.
"Just stay still for a moment."
Crow hissed, digging their fingernails into his shoulders as they held him in a vice-like grip.
"Okay."
And so Sejanus waited until Crow's grip loosened, and their breathing relaxed.
"You can keep going."
It was barely a whisper, but Crow was ready. Sejanus slowly started moving, thrusting in and out at a slow but steady pace.
"Fuck."
He grunted quietly at the sensation. He probably should have given Crow more time to adjust but it just felt too damn good to slow down. And so he sped up. In and out, in and out.
"Sejanus, oh my god-"
Crow moaned, holding onto him. It hurt, but in the best way, and they could barely hold in their whines.
"Sejanus..."
They moaned his name again, rocking their hips up to meet his as he sped up even more, reaching a near-bruising pace.
"Crow, fuck, Crow"
Sejanus grunted, struggling to speak.
"Crow. I love you."
He finally managed to get out before collapsing forward and climaxing inside them.
"I love you too."
Crow murmured, dazed from the pleasure and a little bit breathless from the weight of Sejanus on top of them. Crow let out a soft, contented sigh, reaching up to run their fingers through Sejanus's hair. Sejanus didn't move for a moment, but eventually he managed to pull out and sit up.
"That was good."
He smiled.
"Yeah. It was."
Crow replied, reaching for his hand and taking it in their own.
"Everything is good with you Sejanus. Everything."