Sixth Day of Christmas
Title: Emissary
Fandom: Avatar the Last Airbender
Characters: Zhao, Long Feng
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 600+ words
Summary: Zhao has a secret emissary from the Earth King for Ozai. Unfortunately, he's rather distracted from the message by the emissary himself.
Emissary
***
The earthbender wore in his hair in a long, tight braid. Zhao often imagined forcing his fingers into the weave, jerking back the man's head until he quivered with tension, then licking his exposed throat. He imagined wrapping the braid around his fist, using it to control the earthbender's movements as he knelt before the captain. He imagined undoing the braid as the earthbender begged to be burned, imagined the fall of black hair across scarred skin.
He hoped the earthbender was scarred under those all-encompassing green robes and rock gloves. Sometimes the earthbender tantalized him with a flash of wrist in the shadows of his sleeve. Most of the time the only skin he saw was the man's face and the upper half of his neck.
Didn't earthbenders like to show off their bodies, he wanted to snarl at the man. Why did he cover himself up like a married woman?
But that would frighten the earthbender. He had to be patient, understanding. He needed to make the earthbender comfortable with him. Already, it had taken weeks of these little meetings to get the earthbender to allow him to come close enough to touch. Not that he ever did, because then it would go back to the earthbender keeping him beyond arm's reach.
Patience. There would come a time soon when he could touch the earthbender all he wanted, burn those wretched robes from his body, kiss him breathless- Well, maybe not that. Not when he could listen to the man beg instead.
"I'm beginning to think you're stalling me," the earthbender said. Zhao knew it was a lie, because the earthbender finished his thinking long before he bothered with words.
"Of course not, Long Feng," Zhao said smoothly. "The Second Prince is, however, a prince of the Fire Nation. It's tricky to get a powerful earthbender close enough to Ozai to speak to him, as I'm sure you can well understand."
It was a good lie because it was almost entirely true. Getting the earthbender close to Ozai would have been insanely difficult. If he had even bothered to try. But the Second Prince would see that handsome face with that braid and know what was under the robes, the same as Zhao did. The extremely handsome Second Prince whose father had a reputation for favoring green-eyed women.
It made Zhao want to strike sparks, just thinking about Ozai with Long Feng.
The earthbender's eyes narrowed. "I understand the difficulties. I do not understand why you have hardly progressed in anything over the last few weeks."
Zhao smiled at the earthbender. Did the earthbender think he meant to capture him? Ignoring the fact that Zhao did, doing so would be much easier if he could get the earthbender to think he was going to meet with the Second Prince. "I have duties as a captain as well, Long Feng." He shifted closer, raising his hand as if to clasp the earthbender's shoulder but letting it drop away before he touched him. "It would hardly do to let those duties go undone."
"And yet you have time to meet with me," the earthbender murmured, eyes glittering.
Zhao would have skipped his own coronation if it meant he could spend time alone in the dark with the earthbender. Well, not that. Perhaps an opera with the Second Princess. "An emissary from the Earth King can hardly be ignored."
"It would take great hubris," the earthbender agreed, his voice soft as silk cut in two by a dao blade. Then he sighed, a flash of sudden weariness crossing his face. "What would it take to get you to actually work on this, captain?"
Well.
Well, well, well.
-End-
Fandom: Avatar the Last Airbender
Characters: Zhao, Long Feng
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 600+ words
Summary: Zhao has a secret emissary from the Earth King for Ozai. Unfortunately, he's rather distracted from the message by the emissary himself.
Emissary
***
The earthbender wore in his hair in a long, tight braid. Zhao often imagined forcing his fingers into the weave, jerking back the man's head until he quivered with tension, then licking his exposed throat. He imagined wrapping the braid around his fist, using it to control the earthbender's movements as he knelt before the captain. He imagined undoing the braid as the earthbender begged to be burned, imagined the fall of black hair across scarred skin.
He hoped the earthbender was scarred under those all-encompassing green robes and rock gloves. Sometimes the earthbender tantalized him with a flash of wrist in the shadows of his sleeve. Most of the time the only skin he saw was the man's face and the upper half of his neck.
Didn't earthbenders like to show off their bodies, he wanted to snarl at the man. Why did he cover himself up like a married woman?
But that would frighten the earthbender. He had to be patient, understanding. He needed to make the earthbender comfortable with him. Already, it had taken weeks of these little meetings to get the earthbender to allow him to come close enough to touch. Not that he ever did, because then it would go back to the earthbender keeping him beyond arm's reach.
Patience. There would come a time soon when he could touch the earthbender all he wanted, burn those wretched robes from his body, kiss him breathless- Well, maybe not that. Not when he could listen to the man beg instead.
"I'm beginning to think you're stalling me," the earthbender said. Zhao knew it was a lie, because the earthbender finished his thinking long before he bothered with words.
"Of course not, Long Feng," Zhao said smoothly. "The Second Prince is, however, a prince of the Fire Nation. It's tricky to get a powerful earthbender close enough to Ozai to speak to him, as I'm sure you can well understand."
It was a good lie because it was almost entirely true. Getting the earthbender close to Ozai would have been insanely difficult. If he had even bothered to try. But the Second Prince would see that handsome face with that braid and know what was under the robes, the same as Zhao did. The extremely handsome Second Prince whose father had a reputation for favoring green-eyed women.
It made Zhao want to strike sparks, just thinking about Ozai with Long Feng.
The earthbender's eyes narrowed. "I understand the difficulties. I do not understand why you have hardly progressed in anything over the last few weeks."
Zhao smiled at the earthbender. Did the earthbender think he meant to capture him? Ignoring the fact that Zhao did, doing so would be much easier if he could get the earthbender to think he was going to meet with the Second Prince. "I have duties as a captain as well, Long Feng." He shifted closer, raising his hand as if to clasp the earthbender's shoulder but letting it drop away before he touched him. "It would hardly do to let those duties go undone."
"And yet you have time to meet with me," the earthbender murmured, eyes glittering.
Zhao would have skipped his own coronation if it meant he could spend time alone in the dark with the earthbender. Well, not that. Perhaps an opera with the Second Princess. "An emissary from the Earth King can hardly be ignored."
"It would take great hubris," the earthbender agreed, his voice soft as silk cut in two by a dao blade. Then he sighed, a flash of sudden weariness crossing his face. "What would it take to get you to actually work on this, captain?"
Well.
Well, well, well.
-End-