#eskralt

“Do you want to talk?” Geralt offered.

“No, Lambert had just been an ass,” Eskel mumbled and closed his eyes. Geralt chuckled quietly, of course Lambert had been an ass. He leaned back and continued to run his hands to Eskel’s hair.

After a while the door opened and Jaskier entered.

“Shh,” made Geralt and pointed to Eskel.

“Is he asleep?” Jaskier asked.

“I think he is,” Geralt answered as Jaskier sat down next to him and leaned against Geralt. Eskel probably was asleep, since he didn’t move or react. Jaskier reached out to stroke Eskel’s hair as well.

“He is so cute, isn’t he? Especially when he is asleep,” Jaskier said.

“He really is. I’m already sad that we’re not going to see him through the whole summer. Also, you should have seen him as a child, he was adorable,” Geralt answered with a grin.

“Even more than now?” Jaskier asked in disbelief. Geralt nodded with a fond smile.

“I brought him snacks yesterday, when he was cleaning out the weaponry and the way he smiled at me then, absolutely stunning,” Geralt said.

“I totally get you. You remember when we arrived and I told him he was pretty, the way he blushed, made me nearly fall over my own feet,” Jaskier said and nuzzle up against Geralt’s neck. “Can you imagine if we could be with Eskel? I mean really be with him, like us two, if he’d love us both. He deserves to be loved so much and we would love him so much,” he added.

Geralt hummed in agreement and smiled. They had talked about this before. How Geralt had been in love with Eskel for decades and Jaskier had fallen for him as soon as he met him for the first time last winter. They had discussed this a lot over the last summer, how much they would love to have Eskel as part of their relationship. But none of them had actually dared to make the first step. Geralt carefully caressed Eskel’s hair, pushed a stray strand out of his face. And suddenly he listened up. It had been hidden behind Jaskier’s fast, human heartbeat but when he focused, he realized, Eskel’s heart was practically racing. Jaskier’s was still two times as fast but for a Witcher that was fast. Geralt softly put two fingers on the side of Eskel’s neck to make sure he was not mistaken. And when he looked at Eskel’s eyes, he saw they were not closed in a relaxed way like a sleeping person would, but tightly clenched together. Geralt suddenly felt hot and anxious, Eskel was awake and they possibly had just ruined their friendship with him. Because if he was awake, there was no way he hadn’t heard them. But maybe he pretended to be asleep, to give them a way out, so they could pretend it had never happened.

“Geralt, are you alright? You suddenly look very pale. I mean more pale than usually,” Jaskier asked concerned and stroked his cheek.

“It’s fine,” Geralt lied. He would tell him the truth as soon as they were be alone. Jaskier seemed to get the hint an didn’t say anything else. They sat together in relative silence, except for Jaskier’s humming, until Geralt was sure, Eskel was actually asleep. Then he slid down next to him and settled in for the night, Jaskier did the same at Eskel’s other side. Both cuddled up to Eskel.

---

When Eskel woke up he felt like he was in the safest place in the world and after a bit of orientation he realized it was because he had been sleeping between Geralt and Jaskier, who were now pressed against him, their arms slung around him. He remembered the last evening and panic rose up in him. Yes, he very much did love them and he would love to be part of their relationship, but he felt like he would be an intruder. He also wasn’t sure if they had meant what they had said. They had thought he was asleep and might have just been joking with each other. Geralt had obviously realized that he was awake in the end, that’s why he had been silent. He remembered Geralt’s hand tracing to the side of his neck and he knew Geralt had checked his heart rate there, which had been way too high. As silently as he could, he slid out under their arms and left the room. He would need to find out if they had meant what they had said without risking their friendship.

---

Geralt opened his eyes, he clearly realized something was missing, he could smell Jaskier, who was lying half on top of him and he could smell Eskel, but it was only the smell lingering in the bed, the man had left sometime while they had been sleeping. He closed his arms around Jaskier and buried his face in the bard’s hair. Jaskier apparently was awake.

“Morning Geralt. Are you alright?” he asked sleepily.

“Eskel left,” he mumbled.

“Yeah, I realized.”

“He had been awake when we were talking yesterday, he probably heard every word,” Geralt explained. Jaskier buried his face in the pillow.

“Oh fuck. Do you think we destroyed our friendship with him?” he asked and bit his lip.

“I don’t think so. He kept pretending to be asleep, probably to give us the chance to act like nothing has happened.”

Jaskier nodded, looking a little sad. Geralt wrapped his arms around Jaskier and they just stayed like that for a while.

Breakfast was awkward for the three of them, and Lambert, Aiden, and Vesemir could clearly feel the tension, see the awkward looks they were shooting each other but no one asked what was going on. After they finished eating, Eskel quickly vanished to do something. Seemingly to avoid them. Geralt and Jaskier went outside, they had decided to use winter time to work on Jaskier’s fighting abilities. He had already been good with a sword, but there was always room for improvement. Aiden and Lambert joined them.

“Do you know where Eskel went? Some training would do the old man good,” Lambert said. He called everyone who was older than him old man. Jaskier shook his head.

“Did you guys have a fight with him? You all acted strange this morning,” Aiden said. Jaskier pressed his lips into a thin line.

“Not a fight, no, but we might have still fucked up,” he explained, making it clear he didn’t want to go into further details. Aiden got the hint and didn’t ask further.

“You know, when Lambert and I fight, we talk about it and then fuck for a couple of hours,” Aiden explained, trying to be helpful. Jaskier felt panic creeping up his spine, did they know? Lambert laughed.

“That works because we are together, I believe that won’t work for their particular situation.”

So, it probably had just been Aiden being Aiden who wanted to make a joke. Jaskier relaxed again. Training would hopefully distract him a little.

Jaskier was having a hard time for the next couple of days, he didn’t know how to handle the distance with Eskel. Every time he saw him, he just wanted to hug him. Especially since he looked so unhappy. Geralt wasn’t dealing any better with it, Jaskier could feel how restless his partner was. For him it could mean to lose a decades long friendship, a friendship even longer than a human life. This wasn’t anything one would risk lightly.

It had been four days. Jaskier and Geralt were sitting on their bed, cuddling and talking, until they were disturbed by a knock on the door.

“Yes?” Geralt asked. The door opened and Eskel peaked inside.

“Hi,” he whispered. Geralt’s face immediately softened.

“Hi,” Jaskier answered.

“Can I come in?” Eskel seemed nervous. Jaskier nodded with an inviting gesture. Eskel stepped inside and fell down on the bed. He wiggled a bit until his head rested on Geralt’s lap, instinctively the white haired Witcher started to stroke his hair.

“Do you want to talk?” he asked gently. Eskel shook his head, he just stayed there, accepted getting pets. He turned to his side, eyes still closed and reached for Geralt’s other hand, pulling it against his chest. He gently moved his fingers over Geralt’s hand, caressing the skin. Geralt hummed lowly in response. Jaskier watched them both and wondered if maybe everything had been a misunderstanding. He lifted his hand and brushed over Eskel’s cheek. To his surprise, the Witcher turned his face and gently kissed his hand. A bunch of butterflies seemed to roam his guts. Hopeful, he looked at Geralt who smiled at him.

“Eskel?” he whispered.

“Hmm?” the Witcher opened his eyes and looked at Jaskier.

“The other day, when you were here, you weren’t asleep, right? You heard us talking,” Jaskier said. His hands started to sweat, he felt Geralt’s head against his, like an encouragement.

“Yes, I did,” Eskel confirmed.

“Why did you pretend to be asleep? And why did you leave in the morning?” he asked. Eskel bit his lip, he seemed unsure how to answer. Geralt moved his hand and intertwined his fingers with Eskel’s. This gesture seemed to reassure him to speak.

“I wasn’t sure if you meant what you said, I thought it might have just been a joke,” he explained and Geralt could hear his heart speed up. Eskel didn’t look at them, he was still lying with his head in Geralt’s lap, turned to his side, staring at the wall but he continued to hold Geralt’s hand.

Jaskier put a finger under Eskel’s head to turn his face to him. “Please look at me, dear,” he said softly and Eskel followed the finger, looking up into a pair of blue and a pair of golden eyes.

“We meant every word, I’ve been in love with you for more than twice the time, he has been alive,” Geralt explained and nodded in Jaskier’s direction. Jaskier made an offended noise. Not his fault they were so damn old.

“I’ve been in love with you since we met for the first time, last winter, it took me about a week to absolutely fall for you. The question is, what do you want?” Jaskier asked. Eskel felt incredible nervous, he could not believe that was really happening.

“I love you,” he breathed. “Both of you, I would love to be with you. But I don’t want to intrude.”

Jaskier slid down, so he could lie next to Eskel and put an arm around him, gently brushing his waist. “You don’t, we both want to be with you, as long as you want to be with us.” Eskel felt completely overwhelmed by the wave happiness rushing through his body. He placed a hand on Jaskier’s cheek, looking at his beautiful smile, not getting enough.

“If you want, you can kiss me,” Jaskier offered with a grin. Eskel started to grin back and inched closer, softly brushing his lips against Jaskier’s. His head started spinning at the sensation. He closed his eyes and pressed his lips on Jaskier’s, his hand where moving through the bard’s hair and for a moment he forgot everything else.

It's not a normal bath. They bathe every night. Vesemir insists because it doesn't take long for the communal areas to start smelling like wet dog and stale sweat if they don't. But the routine is a quick and cursory scrub in a shallow tub before the cold gets to their nethers. This bath will be different.

Geralt spends the afternoon filling the largest basin with water. The communal one that used to be maintained by bastion boys and long rusted pipes. He hauls ass 'til the water is deep, and then he tips in salts and a few faint perfumes that he picked up from Ban Ard on his way up.

Geralt stokes the two big fires high, careful to replace all the firewood he's used from the yard to avoid Vesemir's bellyaching. By the time everything's ready, he stinks worse than Lambert after stable duty and has to peel his clothes off before climbing jnto the water, reheating it with a quick pop of igni. He lounges back, enjoys the lap of the water over his skin, the way sensitive scars prickle and muscles loosen. He almost misses Eskel's arrival in the doorway, but he can always feel Eskel's presence in the world around him. It's like a gods-damned earthly magnetism.

Geralt opens his eyes and watches Eskel hesitate in the doorway. Eskel's gaze flickers from the fires, to the tub, to the salts still propped up on a side table. He fiddles with his fingers and the hem of his shirt. One last step, one tiny hurdle. "Gonna get in or admire me all night?" Geralt asks softly, careful to maintain the jokey lilt of their standard exchange. For now.

Eskel's eyebrows twitch up, and then he grins. There's no witty clapback but it has the desired effect. Eskel strips off, folding his clothes on a wonky old stool. Geralt's cock twitches to life at the mere sight of Eskel standing at the edge of the room, bronze skin highlighted in a flickering halo of candle and firelight. The thick pelt of dark hair, the pink scars criss-crossing over his arms, his chest, his plush belly. Those amber eyes that flash in the shadows as Eskel turns back to the bath. Eyes that were usually framed by crow's feet, smile lines, now worried, unsure.

"C'mon, Eskel," Geralt says, lifting his hands from the water to beckon Eskel towards him. One more step. One more decision. And then he would be safe. This was their way of turning the lock on the Path; Eskel's way to let the walls fall and his heart free. He had to let Geralt hold him. Had to pass the control over to someone he trusted if he was to let it go.

Eskel's legs barely cooperate as he negotiates the lip of the tub, and he stumbles through the water until he eventually drops to his knees. Geralt's legs flop open, and he gestures again, insistent. C'mon, just a little further, wolf.

Eskel crawls forward and finally, finally, melts against Geralt's chest. Geralt hears the first shuddering sigh as one of his mental anchors falls loose; feels the flutter of Eskel's eyelashes against the side of his neck as his eyes struggle to stay open.

Geralt encircles his broad shoulders and holds him close. The steam from the water has already dampened Eskel's hair, but Geralt buries his nose in it anyway. Eskel shivers, once, twice, until he is shaking gently in Geralt's arms; a year's worth of tension and pain unspooling into the water with each subtle tremor. Geralt feels something loosen in his own chest. He knows that this is as important for him as it is for Eskel. The tentative opening of his heart to care for a loved one, comfortable in the knowledge that he will not be rebuffed or scorned. Kaer Morhen is the one place now where it is safe for witchers to have feelings.

Geralt cups Eskel's jaw and tilts his head up. He searches for Eskel's mouth, kisses beside his eye, the scars on his cheek, and then his lips with deliberate care, worshipping each part. He can feel Eskel's heartbeat hitch, his breath catch in his throat.

Eskel struggles with kisses still, even after all this time. If he overstretches it hurts his face, so Geralt sets the pace and winds a wet hand through Eskel's hair. He can feel grasping fingers, a coiling tension return; Eskel's desperate to please, to earn his place in Geralt's heart. Like he earns his keep at Kaer Morhen, bearing the weight of the roof and the legacy on his broad shoulders. Their time together isn't about that. Geralt tugs Eskel away, brushes their noses together, and urges Eskel onto his back.

Eskel turns without a fuss, but it takes a little coaxing for him to lean back. As tentative about letting Geralt bear his physical weight as he is about the emotional. "Easy," Geralt whispers, as gently as he would to Roach when the roads are uneven. He and Eskel walk this particular road together every year, and even if Eskel still struggles with the potholes and rocky debris left behind by every contract, Geralt feels surefooted. He knows how to see Eskel safely home. His heart feels light with the glorious purpose of it; the responsibility of caring for someone so strong.

Eskel leans back, eyes flickering closed as Geralt's fingers brush up the arch of his throat. His own hands hover uneasily, searching for something to do, a use. Or perhaps just an anchor. Geralt reaches up and winds their fingers together, bringing Eskel's hand down to rest on his own thigh. "I've got you, Wolf."

Geralt feels rooted, settled, in a way he hasn't all year. He cradles Eskel against him and basks in the glow of trust, of love, as Eskel's body eases. Fitfully at first of course, each shuddering breath yielding a little more tension, until Eskel is blissfully heavy. Geralt traces the arch of his throat, the bottom of those scars; terrain more familiar to him than the uneven flagstones of the grand hall.

Eskel's body warms, responding to Geralt's scent and heat with arousal. It ebbs and flows in the peacefulness, neither of them too concerned with finding a peak, an end. They have all winter for that. This is about being, about existing together in precious quiet. No expectations, no weight to bear but to trust and be trusted. Such a thing was as easy for them now as breathing, with Eskel relinquishing the last of his unease into the water and Geralt gladly holding them both. Geralt knows Eskel's floating, can feel every change of pulse, every twitch, every sigh. His entire world is the man in his arms and he revels in it, high on the precious burden that is his to carry. A burden he dreams of all year that no one else trusts him to carry; Eskel would call it a burden, after all, but Geralt sees it as a gift.

They doze, they drift together...