...to his cock.

“A little privacy?” Gale managed, voice cracking

Cosmo tilted his head at Gale, as if considering a broken insect, all traces of last night’s heat gone from his expression. He exited without another word. 

Gale sat up, heart hammering, and dragged a hand down his face. The reality of what he had done, what he had watched crashed over him in the cold morning light. He felt filthy. Pathetic. And worst of all… still half-hard at the memory. By the time he emerged, dressed and somewhat composed, he had already planned a simple breakfast: stale bread with onion jelly, cheese, and scrapple softened in cheap ale. He watched from the corner of his eye as Cosmo helped the tiefling dress. The elf leaned in close, whispering something filthy that made her ears twitch, gave her ass a firm, possessive pat and sent her on her way down the trail back to the Emerald Grove.

She glanced back once, cheeks still flushed a darker red, before disappearing around the bend.

Gale busied himself with the warding glyphs as the rest of the party prepared to move out. He was just finishing when Cosmo passed him without slowing.

“Ye like watchin’, dinnae ye?” The words were low, meant only for him. “Filthy wee owlet.”

Gale’s stomach flipped. Owlet? 

Sasha's eyes slid down to the key, which was now trembling between Astarion's turncoat fingers, and a tear spilled down their cheek.

"She seems a lovely, fiery foil to your ethereal beauty, and the perfect size to fit snugly in your embrace. Unlike…"

"Don't finish that sentence."

"…me."

Astarion's fingers swept up into his wild curls, tugging at them. How was it Sasha could possess an abundance of talents and wonderful qualities—a gifted tailor, a natural eye for art and beauty, a sharp wit—and yet be so infuriatingly inept at recognizing those values? Or were they being purposely obtuse? Whatever it was, Sasha's inner saboteur was a stalwart figure in their psyche.

"My taran…" Astarion groaned as he paced to their tiny dining table—now enhanced with a second chair, he'd noticed with a flutter in his chest—and back to where Sasha stood, shivering slightly in their skimpy lingerie.

What could he possibly say to get through to them? Or were they going to have this same conversation ad nauseam?

"Erm…yes?"

The hopeful note that crept into their voice chimed like a noontime bell, clearing the fog crawling through Astarion's mind. He realized it didn't matter. Not even a bit. In a perfect world, of course, Sasha's internal looking glass would clearly reflect their inner and outer beauty. But it seemed their mirror was as cracked and beaten as the countless mirrors Father had shattered in his manors.

In that moment Astarion resolved to be their reflection. He would have this conversation as many times as Sasha needed to, and he would tell them every time how wrong they were. He approached once more, hands at the ready but refraining from reaching.

"Lia may be beautiful and quick-witted, but there is one glaring issue she cannot ever hope to overcome: she is not you."

"…Oh."

"Moreover, what makes you think I wish to have someone who fits snugly in my arms like a stuffed animal or pretty doll? What if…" he closed the distance, but rather than wrapping his arms around Sasha he turned, guiding their hands across his chest and stomach. "…I wish to be the one who fits perfectly into someone's embrace? Would that be unthinkable?"

Sasha's lower hand pressed him closer before beginning to work the remaining sections of tucked blouse out from his waistband until they were able to slide beneath it, palm hot against his skin.

The sensation scrambled Astarion's mind so thoroughly that he lost the thread of his thoughts. Head lolling back against Sasha's shoulder, he allowed himself to get swept up in the overwhelming rightness of their touch before he attempted to patch the rubble of his thoughts back into a solid shape.

"What if I wish for an equal partnership built on friendship, understanding, and love? Hmm? What if, rather than pretending to be some stoic protector and provider, I wish to be cherished and adored, showered with gifts and affection as I so clearly deserve?"

"…You do deserve that…" Sasha murmured, sounding remorseful.

"Yes! I do! Not enough people recognize that," he huffed. "But you do."

"You deserve so much more than I could ever have the means to give you. Not even my duchy or all the Amastacia family riches would be enough."

Fingers swished across Astarion's nipple under his shirt, the pebbled cluster of nerves radiating a comforting pleasure with each pass.

"Keep them! I've more of my own riches than I could possibly need in my very long lifetime. You offer something else I want that is far rarer and more precious anyhow."

"My thick cock and crippling anxiety?"

"Ha! At this point I would perish without the former, but I would banish the latter in a heartbeat if I had the power, darling. But no, not what I had in mind.

"I see in you a kindred soul. You know precisely how it feels to be stuck in your father's shadow, hungry to show the world who you are yet cursed to keep so much hidden lest you be misunderstood. But you make me feel safe enough to put my full self on display in all my messy, gorgeous, imperfect glory. You…understand me. And unless I have misread you, you have little interest in my title, my wealth, or my father's legacy. You—"

"—I just want you."

If you prefer the real slides with real text in them, I've put them in my drive (I'd recommend downloading the thing to be able to read the graphs, however... Also google slides fucks up my presentation and idk how to fix it, big sad): https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/16LXCf8ytvFXqInEIG7x90SDx4CXNkSrF/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=106694258125622774911&rtpof=true&sd=true

If you want the raw data I put it on my drive. Take it and use it to blow up Florrick's car idk: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1xNjBJolZh6a5vNC6bfJTNqfVuULyM2_e/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=106694258125622774911&rtpof=true&sd=true