Archive of Our Own ^beta

The morning after their first night together in Ashe’s tent, Sylvain worried that when he saw Ashe he would avoid him, or worse, hate him. He certainly hadn’t forced Ashe into anything, but it had also seemed like he hadn’t been thinking about Sylvain in that way prior to him making a move the night before. At least, certainly not the way Sylvain had been fantasising about him. He worried that Ashe had gotten caught up in the heat of the moment, and would regret what they’d done. Sylvain had absolutely convinced himself of this when he could not find Ashe anywhere around Base Camp.

He didn’t see him at the Recreation Quarter, the Training Grounds, or the Tactics Academy. In fact, he couldn’t find him at all during his not-so-casual stroll around the base camp. Had Ashe left the base camp to go and clear his head? Was he so mortified about what had happened that he was pulling a Bernadetta and refusing to leave his quarters? Sylvain decided to stop by his tent. Just in case something was wrong, he told himself.

Standing awkwardly at Ashe’s closed tent entrance, Sylvain called Ashe’s name gently. Upon receiving no response, he called out louder. Sylvain tried one last time before turning to leave. He turned back around upon hearing the rustling of a tarp and saw Ashe standing before him, looking… tired? Droopy-lidded, and rubbing at one of his eyes, Ashe emitted an enormous yawn, immediately moving his hand to cover his mouth. His hair was dishevelled, and he wasn’t even in his armour yet. He looked for all the world as though he had just crawled out of bed. Had Ashe… overslept? That wasn’t like him at all. Sylvain immediately felt guilty for having kept him up so late the night before. Goddess, he looked adorable right now though…
–Wait. It dawned on Sylvain that if Ashe had only just awoken, he had just barged to his tent unannounced, and not given him any time to–

“Morning, Sylvain!” Ashe greeted, with as much enthusiasm as he could muster in his sleepy state. “Is everything okay?”

The fact that he was asking Sylvain that… Goddess, he’d really messed up. He was going to seem clingy and possessive and–

“Sylvain?” Ashe asked again, concern lacing his voice. His pale green eyes were more alert now.

Sylvain was sure that his own eyes betrayed his panic.

“Sorry, everything’s fine. I was just a bit wo– I, uh, hadn’t seen you around this morning. You’re usually up so early, so, I thought I’d come and check if you were here.”

“Oh. What time is–” Ashe cut off abruptly. His freckled cheeks began to fill with colour. Ashe averted his gaze. “Please excuse me,” Ashe lowered his head in a shallow bow before retreating into his tent.

Damn it… He had really messed this up… What was he thinking? Bolting over here like an eager puppy waiting for his master to come through the door. He was acting just like those needy girls from– Oh. Oh. He really did used to be a jerk, huh? No wonder everyone used to despise his behaviour, Ashe included. He could tell himself that they were all just after his crest all he wanted, but… maybe some of them had actually liked him. The way he liked Ashe.

“Ugh,” Sylvain groaned, one hand covering half of his face.

Still, he needed to get out of here. Leave Ashe alone. Ashe deserved some time to think things over properly. He probably didn’t want to see a jerk like him again anyway. Starting to spiral, Sylvain hastily retreated to his own tent.

***

After enough time had passed that Sylvain had begun to feel well and truly guilty for not being out there training or helping around the camp, he reluctantly exited his tent and began to slink down to the Training Grounds.

“There you are, old friend!” Dimitri called as he entered the grounds.

“Great…” Sylvain thought to himself.

“Care to train with me?” Dimitri asked pleasantly.

“I’m guessing you’re not actually going to give me much of a choice. Am I right?”

Dimitri chuckled good-naturedly. He approached Sylvain, stood beside him, and slapped him on the back, lurching Sylvain forward.

“Apologies, Sylvain! I never can seem to get used to that strength of mine. It’s a curse.”

“I shudder to think what you’ll do to me if I refuse to train with you! I’d say toss me a lance, but it might be safer to grab one myself…”

Dimitri smiled, used to Sylvain’s particular brand of humour.

Sylvain wandered over to the weapons rack and selected a steel lance.

“He could probably snap this in two with bare hands, not to mention with his training lance,” Sylvain thought to himself.

“Just… Try not to kill me, Your Majesty,” Sylvain pleaded half-jokingly.

“Very funny, Sylvain,” Dimitri retorted. 

***

Sylvain was so distracted that it wasn’t long before he found himself flat in the dirt, legs knocked out from under him. He accepted the armour-covered hand that was extended to him, praying that his own hand wouldn’t be crushed in the process. As his childhood friend hoisted him up, he saw Ashe looking over at them from the top of the steps. As soon as they locked eyes, Ashe scurried away in the direction of the Tactics Academy.

“Ashe, wait!” Sylvain called out, to no avail. He let his head drop and loosed an enormous sigh.

When he looked back up, he was met with the scrutinous gaze of the King of Faerghus.

“Did you two have some kind of disagreement?” Dimitri questioned. He seemed to have already made up his mind that it was Sylvain’s fault.

“No, no, nothing like that,” Sylvain side-stepped.

“Sylvain.”

Sylvain could hear the edge in Dimitri’s tone, his name like a warning.

“Whatever you did to Ashe, fix it. That’s an order.”

“But I–” Sylvain stopped short as Dimitri crossed his arms and raised his eyebrows. Sylvain sighed and bowed in apology. “Of course, Your Majesty.”

Sylvain picked up the steel lance, replaced it in the rack, and took off after Ashe.

***

Sylvain quickly found Ashe in the Tactics Academy, as expected. He appeared to have set himself up rather quickly. He gave the illusion of being extremely focused on the documents he was perusing. Or perhaps he really was studying already. Ashe certainly didn’t like to waste time these days.

Sylvain cleared his throat.

Ashe turned. “Oh! Sylvain. Hi.”

Wow… He must really want to avoid him…

“Hey. Sorry to interrupt your studying.”

There was an awkward pause.

“Look, uh, truth be told, given the way you ran off like that, Dimitri thinks we’ve had some kind of fight. He also assumes that I started it. Honestly, I’m a little afraid of what he’ll do to me if he thinks I haven’t made it up to you.”

Ashe looked downcast. “Oh…”

Those sad eyes… He’d caused them…

“Look, Ashe, I–”

“–I’m sorry to have caused you trouble,” Ashe apologised.

“Woah, woah, woah. You have nothing to apologise for. I’m the one who should be apologising.”

Ashe blinked at Sylvain, appearing confused. “For… what exactly?”

Sylvain stared back at Ashe, equally confused. He glanced around the Tactics Academy. There wasn’t anyone in here at the moment, aside from the usual Scholar, but… Sylvain leaned closer and suggested quietly, “Maybe we should talk somewhere else? If that’s okay with you?”

Ashe nodded his assent. He quickly packed up his things and followed Sylvain outside.

Sylvain led them both to the stables. He gestured his head towards the horses. “Do you want to head out to the forest for a bit? We could go for a walk?”

“Oh, uh, sure,” Ashe replied.

The two men saddled up in silence and headed out.

***

When they arrived at the mouth of the lush forest, Sylvain and Ashe tied their horses up to graze on the tall grass.

The silence was threatening to swallow Sylvain whole, so oppressive had it become. He snuck a glance at Ashe, who was still avoiding eye contact and did not appear likely to start a conversation any time soon. Sylvain was going to have his work cut out for him…

***

They had been following the narrow dirt path at the forest’s entrance for a short time when Sylvain, no longer able to bear the crushing silence, cleared his throat and finally began to speak. Turning to face Ashe, he said, “I hear you should make as much noise as possible when you’re in the woods to scare off bears. Bang on your armour, yell at the top of your lungs, you know, that kind of thing. If we don’t start talking soon, we might get eaten alive!”

Ashe’s eyes widened in terror and Sylvain quickly added, “Kidding! Kidding! Well, about the being eaten alive part anyway. I bet we could take any bears that come our way.”

“Right…” Ashe replied nervously.

This was off to a terrible start… His charm factor was way off today.

“Sorry, that was a terrible way to start the conversation…” Sylvain apologised sincerely. “If I’m being honest, I’m a bit nervous.”

Ashe cocked his head in surprise. “You? Nervous? But you’re the most confident person I know!”

“Yeah, well, I’m only human,” Sylvain replied, hands locked behind his head. He let them drop and steeled himself to continue. “I mean, you ran away from me as fast as you could earlier, so…”

Ashe blushed, head down in embarrassment.

“About that… I’m sorry, Sylvain. I just kind of panicked.”

“No, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have barged over to your tent this morning. I should have given you time to… to…”

Ashe’s brows furrowed slightly. “To what?”

Sylvain sighed. “You’re really going to make me spell it out? I should have given you some space to think about last night. I mean, if you hated my guts and never wanted to see me again, the last thing you needed was for me to show up at your tent the next morning without warning…”

Ashe blinked at Sylvain, his eyes widening slightly.

“Almost as soon as you saw me this morning, you ran back in your tent and hid from me. Then, at the Training Grounds, you ran away again. You’ve also barely spoken a word since we saddled up. Even I know when to take a hint. I just want to make sure that you’re… that we’re… Look, if I took things too far last night, I’m really sorry.”

Ashe blanched. “What? That’s not–”

Sylvain cut in. “–Or if you just wanted it to be a one-time thing, I’ll back off. Like I said, I shouldn’t have shown up unannounced this morning. That wasn’t cool.”

“Sylvain, I–”

“–And don’t worry, I’m obviously not going to tell anyone. So you don’t have to worry about your knightly reputation being ruined by a scumbag like me…”

“SYLVAIN!” Ashe shouted angrily. He had come to a standstill.

Sylvain started. He had never heard Ashe speak with that kind of force or tone before. His usually soft features had twisted into a scowl.

“Would you stop interrupting me and let me talk?” Ashe continued crankily.

Eyes wide, Sylvain simply nodded.

Ashe took a deep breath and his features softened once more.

“None of what you said is true. I’m sorry for running away from you, but the truth is… I was just… embarrassed.”

Sylvain didn’t dare interrupt again.

“Last night, I… Well, you know it was a first for me. Whenever I saw you today, I thought of last night and got… well, flustered,” Ashe blushed.

Sylvain opened his mouth but quickly closed it again.

“I didn’t know how to look you in the eye after that. This is all new to me…”

Sylvain’s heart began to flutter. This wasn’t sounding like a rejection. Not so far anyway.

“You’re so experienced, so you’re probably used to it, but for me it’s embarrassing to think about you having seen me like that…”

Sylvain gave Ashe a reassuring smile, his brown eyes friendly and warm. “Is it okay if I talk now?”

Head down, embarrassed by his outburst, Ashe nodded.

“Ashe, you have nothing to be embarrassed about,” Sylvain reassured, voice soothing as honey.

“Well, I can’t help it,” Ashe replied defensively. “Just like…” he trailed off in a much gentler voice. “Just like I can’t help thinking about doing it all again.”

Sylvain’s mouth went dry.

Ashe looked away, his cheeks burning.

“I thought…” Ashe continued. “That maybe you didn’t want to. You were so surprised last night when you found out that I hadn’t… I thought maybe that’s why you left so suddenly. That you thought I was too inexperienced. Then you showed up this morning and it all came rushing back. I was just embarrassed, about all of it. Including the fact that I overslept, which is why I rushed back inside to get changed.”

Sylvain was trying very hard to listen over the thrumming in his ears. Ashe had said he’d wanted to do it again.

“But you were already gone by the time I came back out. You were so nonchalant too, like nothing had happened. So, I figured that you didn’t want to see me again.”

That snapped Sylvain out of his stupor. He frowned. “Ashe, I told you last night that I care about you. That I wasn’t going to mess you around. I told you I’ve changed. Do you really think I’d do that to you?”

Ashe looked apologetic. “It’s not you, Sylvain. I… I just don’t have a lot of confidence in myself. Not when it comes to this. Everything I know about romance comes from tales about chivalrous knights.”

“Romance,” Sylvain thought. “He really is cute.” He couldn’t help it… He had to…

“Oh yeah? And in these books, did the knights ever do what we did?” Sylvain teased.

Ashe’s cheeks flushed once again. Sylvain loved that he could make him blush so easily.

“Be serious, Sylvain,” Ashe scolded.

“Come on, Ashe. I was just teasing. You’re the one who said you always knew I was a serious man deep down.”

“Pathetic. Fishing for more compliments at a time like this.”

Ashe smiled, blanketing Sylvain in his warmth. “And I meant it.”

Sylvain had never felt more seen than when he was with Ashe. He always saw the good in everyone, not just Sylvain, but even so...

“Would it be okay if I kissed you?” Sylvain asked. His voice was stripped back, no hint of the usual charm or casualness he infused his words with. He was laying his soul bare for Ashe. For once in his life, he felt like someone actually wanted him; the real him.

“I’d like that,” Ashe replied, in a voice as soft as butter.

Sylvain cupped Ashe’s delicate face in his hands and kissed him tenderly. He closed his eyes and let himself feel the waves of happiness and raw emotion passing over him; tried to channel all of his unspoken feelings into the kiss.

When they broke apart, Ashe smiled and joked, “That actually was like in my knight stories.”

Sylvain chuckled. “Well, there’s more where that came from. How would you feel about me coming to your tent again tonight?” he asked boldly, confidence restored.

Ashe ducked his head, blushing gently. He nodded bashfully. “That would be nice.”

“Nice? This boy was truly going to kill him… No. Not a boy. This man.”  

“As you wish, my brave knight,” Sylvain flirted, picking up Ashe’s hand and giving it a kiss.

Ashe chuckled, “That’s not quite how it usually goes.”

“Oh? Maybe we should write our own story then,” Sylvain smiled.

Ashe smiled back.

Sylvain had a feeling that that smile could keep him warm throughout the harshest of Faerghus winters.

The atmosphere finally more relaxed, Sylvain and Ashe finished their walk, chatting as they went. Sylvain asked Ashe, seriously this time, to tell him more about his favourite knight stories. He would never get tired of the way Ashe’s face lit up when he talked about his favourite books. In the back of his mind, though, he had to admit that he was taking some mental notes for later.

***

Later that night, Sylvain visited Ashe’s tent as promised, dressed in his everyday clothes this time. He found Ashe already waiting for him in bed. A little thrill jolted through Sylvain at the sight.

Sylvain was quick to remove his boots and gloves, then tossed aside his scarf for good measure. He crawled under the blankets with Ashe and snuggled in close. Sylvain tucked a few strands of Ashe’s gorgeous silver hair behind his ear. He kissed him sweetly, slow to start. Sylvain let Ashe take his time to explore; to bring their soft lips together again and again, to experiment with his tongue, and suck gently on Sylvain’s.   

When Sylvain pulled back, he began stroking Ashe’s cheek with his thumb absentmindedly. Ashe’s breathing already seemed a little laboured, and they’d only just begun. He couldn’t believe he’d been given the chance to be here with Ashe again, and he certainly wasn’t going to waste it. Sylvain couldn’t wait to have Ashe completely at his mercy once more.

Sylvain kissed him again, this time sliding his hand under Ashe’s shirt and over his waist. He tightened his grip ever so slightly as he kissed Ashe more purposefully.

Ashe melted into him, already desperate for more. He bucked into Sylvain involuntarily, almost driving Sylvain wild.

“Easy,” Sylvain crooned. “There’s plenty of time for that.”

He teased his lips against Ashe’s, letting them dust his but never quite giving him the contact he craved. Ashe’s fingers had begun latching themselves in Sylvain’s shirt. Every time Ashe leaned in to try and ensnare Sylvain’s lips again, Sylvain yanked his head back.

Sylvain leaned over Ashe’s ear and tutted sensually, “Uh uh.”

Ashe whimpered in response.

That helpless little noise was all it took for Sylvain to lose the grip on his control. He let out a rough, low sound almost like a growl and nipped at Ashe’s neck, eliciting a small cry of surprise from Ashe. Sylvain shoved Ashe onto his back and leant over him. Immediately, he licked over the spot he had nipped and began sucking mercilessly. Ashe inhaled shakily, then began to moan underneath Sylvain. Those sweet sounds spurred Sylvain on further. He unleashed himself upon Ashe’s neck, ravaging all his most sensitive areas. He then shoved his knee between Ashe’s legs, spreading them apart. Sylvain, already well and truly hard, so turned on was he by the delightful noises Ashe was making, ground himself against Ashe’s own hardness.

Just as Ashe began to whimper beneath him once more, Sylvain pulled himself away suddenly.

Ashe’s body, lamenting the lack of contact, leant towards Sylvain like a plant towards the sun, desperate for that life-giving warmth once more.

Sylvain couldn’t help the satisfied smirk that appeared on his face.

Ashe’s eyes fluttered open and gazed into Sylvain’s molten eyes.   

“Do you want more?” Sylvain asked cockily.

Ashe shuddered and nodded, seemingly lost for words.

Sylvain leaned down and whispered in Ashe’s ear, “Then you’ll have to ask for it.” Sylvain drew back for a perfect view of the damage he’d done.

Ashe blushed and shook his head.

“Aww, don’t be shy,” Sylvain teased. “Your loyal squire just wants to make you feel good. All you have to do is give me the order…” Sylvain leaned in close to Ashe’s ear again, before finishing, “Sir Ashe.”

“Sylvain…” Ashe pleaded, crimson now.

“Maybe this was too much, too fast,” Sylvain thought. “Maybe he still wants to be wooed for now.”

“P-p-please,” Ashe stammered, cheeks flushed and breathing heavily. His eyes were glazed, and heavy with lust.

“Goddess, you’re gorgeous.” The words slipped out before Sylvain could stop them.

“I want you,” Ashe managed. “I want you to… to…” He couldn’t seem to get the words out. Or perhaps he did not even know what he wanted.

Sylvain pressed a single finger to Ashe’s lips and dragged it down slowly as he shushed him.

“It’s alright, my knight. I’ll take care of you. I want to show you just how much you mean to me.”

Sylvain pressed his hard cock against Ashe and ground against him slowly, sensually. He kissed him gently, swapping between stroking his cheek and his hair at intervals.

The sweet sounds of Ashe’s whimpers and moans were music to Sylvain’s ears. He couldn’t get enough.

Ashe’s fingers entwined themselves in the back of Sylvain’s hair as Sylvain worked at Ashe’s neck once again.

Ashe had begun to rut into Sylvain more frequently now.

“He must be getting close,” Sylvain thought, pleased with his efforts.

“Do you want to finish?” Sylvain asked gently. “I can make you feel so good.”

Ashe nodded. “Yes,” he begged. “Please Sylvain.”

“As you wish, my knight.”

Sylvain crushed their lips together in a searing kiss. He began to thrust against Ashe hard and fast.

Sylvain threw his head back in pleasure as Ashe moaned his name over and over again. He wasn’t going to be able to hold on much longer.

They were a tangle of limbs as Ashe grabbed at everything he could get his hands on; Sylvain’s hair, his neck, his shirt, his back, even his ass. He rutted up into Sylvain and tried to pull him even closer.

“Good… He’s getting bolder...” Sylvain thought.

“Oh Goddess…” Ashe breathed. “I… I’m… I’m going to…”

“Ahhh!” Ashe cried, voice shaky, as he spilled in his pants for the second time in two days.

Sylvain followed not long after with a deep groan, his own pleasure exploding through him. He shuddered as he spilled the last of his seed, collapsing, boneless, on top of Ashe. Sylvain rolled off of him quickly, and let the two of them catch their breath.

He tried to slide a hand under Ashe’s shirt and over his waist again, but Ashe twitched, still too sensitive after his release.

“Sorry, sorry,” Sylvain apologised, withdrawing his hand. He settled for giving Ashe a quick peck on the lips and snuggling in close.

“Sylvain… That was…” Ashe still didn’t seem to be able to form a coherent thought, let alone put one into words.

“My job is done then,” Sylvain thought to himself smugly.

Ashe gripped Sylvain’s face with his hands and gave him a passionate kiss, as though trying to convey his feelings with actions, rather than words.

Sylvain draped an arm over Ashe’s chest and placed his head against his heart. He could hear and feel it thumping away. He found the sound soothing; reassuring.

Sylvain lay there for a while, letting himself relax and soak everything in. He enjoyed the way his head moved with the rise and fall of Ashe’s chest.

When he eventually peeked up at Ashe, his eyes were closed, his breathing steady.

“Did he fall asleep?” Sylvain wondered. “So cute…”

Sylvain tried to extricate himself as slowly and carefully as possible to avoid waking him.

He had just gathered up his things and had begun lifting the tent flap when he heard Ashe stirring behind him.

“Sylvain?” Ashe called out sleepily. “Where are you going?”

“Uhh, back to my tent?” Sylvain answered carefully.

Ashe sat up. “Oh, OK,” he said. He sounded… disappointed.

“Did you… Did you want me to stay?” Sylvain asked.

Ashe nodded sheepishly.

Sylvain smiled.

Ashe smiled back.

Yes. Sylvain hoped that he would have the privilege of continuing to see that sweet smile for a long time to come.