(DISCONTINUED) LAFLAMS: FROM the_one_golden_sun

THE SILENT COURTSHIP (pt 3)

Lafayette ascended the throne that winter, after the passing of his father. All of the domestic servants watched from the observation balconies in the throne room, John among them. He knew later that night there would be a ball, one he would not take part in.

He would be readying himself for his King.

Over a year they had waited, heated letters, hours of kissing, secret touches, and the night was finally upon them. An actual consummation of their love, a night all their own, where they would have the freedom to feast on each other.

Lafayette asked him what he needed to feel ready. He was to be taken to his private bed chambers, ready himself and wait. He requested from Lafayette a proper bath and a pretty outfit, one he would like. John wanted Lafayette to see him in finery, unwrap him like a gift. And fine oil to make penetration easier. Lafayette insisted John feel no pain with him.

John bathed carefully, scrubbed every intimate spot. Dressed in the clothing Lafayette had sent to him, a choice of several outfits. He picked out silks in a rich blue color, flowing and sheer and fitted. He examined himself in the mirror in the dressing room. The blue made his skin glow golden, his freckles stand out. He had his hair braided into one intricate plait, imagined Lafayette unwinding it and twirling his fingers in the strands.

When he was led to Lafayette’s bed chambers, nothing could prepare him for the opulence. Gold and rich brocade. A massive four poster bed with a canopy, a writing desk, a dressing table. On the bedside table, a carafe of the oil they requested. John blushed, but his nervousness was stamped out by his excitement. Unsure where to wait, he stood at the foot of the bed.

Lafayette burst into the room smiling, just a few minutes later. In the candlelight of bedroom, this close and illuminated, everything felt sharper. Lafayette looked him over like a cat considering a mouse, but smiled warmly. “You look… You look so beautiful,” he said. “I feel I have been waiting for this moment all my life.”

John wrapped his arms around Lafayette’s neck, kissed his cheek. “Take me to bed, my King,” he purred, nipped at his jaw.

After a few steadying breaths, Laf put a few inches between them. “Before...before we do this, we must speak frankly. I must let you know. I announced at the ball, all servants here that my father had...purchased...you have all been granted your freedom.” He looked pained. “I do not want you here with me if you feel coerced. Now, or after, or any time you are free to walk out of the palace, John.”

John was shocked, but pleased. His love for Lafayette was a separate thing than his servitude, but his freedom…

“I cannot leave you,” John admitted. “What if I want to be near you?”

Lafayette grinned, and pet his hair. “This can be arranged. It must stay secret, however. We can make a place for you to live, here in the palace.”

“I choose you,” John said softly. “I choose you tonight, I choose you for always.”

The smile that broke across Lafayette’s face could illuminate the whole palace. “Words...cannot fully express…my joy…”

“Where words fail, show me this joy,” John suggested. “I beg of you again, my King, take me to bed.”

Lafayette swept John into his arms, carried him the four steps to the bed, laid him down gently. Reunited their lips, refused to break away while he climbed into the bed to lay on top of John. The kissing was so familiar, it was like coming home after a long day. Only tonight, something lay underneath it: the anticipation, the longing.

Undressing each other was an exquisite experience. Lafayette shed his own cloak, let John untie his sash. Tonight he was dressed in shades of red: garnet, scarlet, ruby, and currant. The velvet fell away to reveal his sumptuous undergarments, white silk, and John was shy to touch him, until Lafayette took his hand and placed it on his chest over his beating heart.