(Untitled)

[theunascended]

Dinner. It'd been a long time since he'd actually made dinner. It wasn't anything special this time. Just bits and pieces tossed together to make something that Daniel wasn't sure what to call. But it was food. And there was a table. And there were notes that he was using

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[karmic_darwin]

When Daniel told him he'd invited Alcuin to join them for a working dinner, Mohinder had been vaguely piqued. He wouldn't have invited Alcuin to spend time with he and Daniel, for any reason, without consulting Daniel first. Because of the awkwardness of how they'd gotten together in the first place.

But they did have to teach the class together. And he had been the one who'd been with Alcuin, so if Daniel felt comfortable about the three of them being together, Mohinder couldn't object. It might be uncomfortable for him with the rec room's mischief fresh in his mind, but if it would make Daniel comfortable, he would do it and smile.

As always in the evenings, he found Daniel with his nose buried in a book. If they hadn't been expecting Alcuin as well, he'd have settled on the bed with a book of his own and forgotten Daniel was there until they both happened to look up at the same time. Tonight, they needed to be present.

So he moved behind Daniel, bent and kissed the side of his neck, murmuring, "Hello, professor" in French, and

[will_you_see]

Alcuin gave Daniel a bit of a sharp look... which probably came off even sharper than he intended because it was such a rarity that that sort of expression crossed his face, even rarer than raising his voice. "Nothing happened that needed to be told. I'm sure that you hardly expect Mohinder to appraise you of every moment of his day."

Then he blinked a little in surprise and to Mohinder added, "I'm sorry, I hadn't really thought much about the context of the songs that jukebox was choosing... that is, after I realized what a 'gigolo' was. I didn't realize that you thought it was making suggestions about your sex life."

[theunascended]

"I don't," Daniel said evenly, "but when there's a mention of songs that make Mohinder skittish around you, I get curious." He took a breath, held it for a minute, and then let it out slowly. Then he glanced at Mohinder and Alcuin. "You don't expect me to be upset, do you? It's not as if you exactly had control over what the jukebox was playing, right?"

His stomach twisted a little, but he shrugged and took a bite of his food.

This wasn't the time or the place for an argument and he was tired of having the same one - or variations on the theme - every time something like this happened. So he just wouldn't have the fight.

[karmic_darwin]

Taken aback by the swiftness and sharpness of Alcuin's defense of him, Mohinder's mouth opened slightly, then shut again. Then Daniel spoke, with far more mildness on the subject than he'd expected.

Mohinder took a slightly ragged breath and rubbed the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger. "It's all right, Alcuin. There's nothing to apologize for. It simply caught me off guard, since--" and here he thumbed the crease of Daniel's captive palm more insistently, more familiarly, "as we've all observed, the issue of sex is still quite fraught between us."

Fraught, that was one word for it. He never wanted to regret having been with Alcuin; it had been lovely and intimate and precisely what he needed. But it'd hurt Daniel and set them onto this trajectory, and it was hard not to wish it had been different.

He switched to French, knowing Alcuin would still be able to understand, so it would not be rude. And yet also appealing to the intimacy of the language between he and Daniel. "Not upset, no. Hurt, perhaps, or nervous."

[will_you_see]

Though Alcuin was glad that they weren't fighting over something so trivial, he still couldn't help the sigh of frustration that escaped his lips. Shaking his head, he said, "It's not that I blame either of you for my own misconceptions, but I honestly was under the impression that you both had more of a feel for the precepts of Elua than most people here I come across. Not that I begrudge the two of you for finding each other, but I have to say that it's a little disconcerting that it seems to have brought out a rather unpleasant possessiveness in each of you."

He held up a hand before either could protest, and added, "I'm not judging. I do realize that for many people monogamy works better with a touch of possessiveness. I'm merely letting you know that from my perspective, I don't understand why our relationship is fraught with anything, be it hurt, nerves, or otherwise."

[theunascended]

"No upset, no hurt, no nervous," Daniel said. He squeezed Mohinder's hand gently, not nearly as hard as he wanted to, and turned to Alcuin. "Anything you want to know about me, Alcuin, is yours for the asking." There were some truths that he would keep to himself, of course, but Alcuin would have to know the right questions to ask. "I've never hidden anything from you."

An idea flashed through Daniel's mind, fast enough he wasn't even sure what it was, but it left uneasiness in its wake.

Something that could either be a disaster or a solution.

[karmic_darwin]

Mohinder looked from one to the other, uncertain what to say. His jaw and shoulders had grown rather tight, and he knew Daniel's rhythms well enough, he could feel the restraint in Daniel's touch.

He pressed his lips together to stop his mouth while he gave thought to what he wanted to express. Finally, he addressed Alcuin, "There is a difference between understanding and respecting, and encompassing the precepts for oneself. Even so, that is not the problem."

His eyes closed briefly, then he looked at Daniel while he spoke. "The problem is that I was with you after Daniel believed, with reason, that he and I had begun something. But, also with reason, I believed that what we shared would not materialize soon." Of course, there was the other issue, the true elephant in the living room. Mohinder turned his gaze on Alcuin. "And, then, there is the fact that both of us have an attraction to you."

[will_you_see]

"I fail to see how that is any sort of problem," Alcuin said with a slight shrug. "I think that all of us are well aware that I am no romantic rival for either of you. And because I think that the two of you fit well together, I myself am in no danger of falling for either of you. None of those things mean that there cannot be an attraction between us - nor does it mean that there could be no intimacy, though I suspect that perhaps that idea is taking the hypothetical a bit too far for your sensibilities." He paused and added, "Though you do seem content enough to dance around around the subject as if it were some pit in the middle of the room you are scared of tumbling into."

[theunascended]

Daniel raised an eyebrow. "I'm not dancing around anything. I was uncomfortable around you because I lied to you and that got resolved yesterday, so long as the accepted apology stands." Which, while technically not true, could have been since he'd never told Mohinder exactly why he was uncomfortable around Alcuin. He just hadn't talked about him.

He glanced at Mohinder and then caught Alcuin's gaze.

"Alcuin, you don't scare me," he said softly. "I thought I'd made that clear and if I haven't, I apologize. I never deal well with losing someone I care about, whether it's through death or my own sheer stupidity."

[karmic_darwin]

At Alcuin's words, Mohinder's stomach went flat-tight and his mouth went dry. He swallowed against the dryness, and re-laced his fingers with Daniel's. With his free hand, he pushed his food around his plate with a fork. While it undoubtedly fooled neither of them, it did give him a moment to clear his thoughts.

First the song, and now Alcuin had made explicit the suggestion they might be intimate together. He couldn't be absolutely sure that Alcuin meant all three of them, but he knew beyond doubt Daniel wouldn't be okay with he and Alcuin continuing their intimacy. But if he could without it upsetting Daniel, he could be content to allow Daniel the same, he thought.

"It's not the intimacy I'm afraid of." Though he was, a little; how would it even work, the three of them? "It's hurting either of you again. Or--" he moved his leg to press against Daniel's, then glanced at each Daniel and Alcuin in turn. "Losing you."

[will_you_see]

Alcuin just looked at both of them for a moment, and then sighed wearily. "This conversation is going around in circles," he said. "I for one have no intention of walking on eggshells and I hope that neither of you feels necessary to do the same around me. Perhaps it is best if we simply forget any past intimacies and move forward as friends. Either that, or simply invite me into your bed, because the middle ground seems to be far too precarious. I do not wish for the two of you to feel uncomfortable around me."

[theunascended]

Sink or swim time. Tired of the fights that seemed to be one long-standing argument that was interspersed amongst all the good times, Daniel decided to hell with it. Compromise was what good couples did, right? He knew he was lying to himself - and wouldn't Jack be proud? - but he hung tight to the reasoning. He reached out with his free hand and grabbed Alcuin's, squeezing it softly.

"No walking on eggshells, Alcuin, you have my word, at least. You're right. We're going around in circles. You're still worried I'll be uncomfortable around you and I won't. As for Mohinder, I'm fairly sure he's still trying to wrap his brain around the idea of the three of us in a bed together."

He looked at Mohinder. "Or are you worried about my feelings? You shouldn't be."

[karmic_darwin]

Mohinder's brain just stopped, and if his jaw wasn't hanging open, it was only by the grace of the tension that had held it shut earlier. His heart skipped, too, squeezing hard, then lurching forward and dragging his brain into high gear with it.

Leave aside that he'd never been intimate with more than one person at a time, and the logistics of it made him nervous - who would do what to whom and how? Did he even want this? Did he want to watch someone else - a very skilled someone else - make Daniel moan and cry? Did he want to watch Daniel pleasing Alcuin? Or have Daniel see him in either position? Did he want Alcuin to see he and Daniel together, and know the thing that neither of them was ready to say but became more apparent with each passing kiss?

It was an alternative, but...was it a good one? And why must he decide right here and now without talking to Daniel first

[will_you_see]

Perhaps Alcuin had underestimated them after all. He squeezed Mohinder's hand and said, "You know, this thing does not have to be about the three of us so much as it can be about the two of you. It is hard for some people to understand, but there is something in the act of sharing that can bring a couple closer together. It's something that I have a fair amount of experience with."

He had often been hired by couples back in Terre d'Ange. He was an easy choice for men who might be wary about sharing their wives with another man - Alcuin imagined that he seemed non-threatening.

He looked at each of them in turn and added, "I understand if it is something that the two of you would like to discuss in private first."

[theunascended]

"Just willing?" Daniel said, the barest hint of a tease in his voice as he looked at Mohinder. He turned back to Alcuin. "And wasn't this about the three of us to begin with?"

Which was true in a way.

"I asked Alcuin out on a date before you'd ever arrived on the island, Mohinder." He was chagrined and it showed in his face. "That went rather poorly. And obviously you were interested in Alcuin."

He gave Mohinder a look that clearly said that this was the most logical solution.

[karmic_darwin]

"Perhaps slightly more than willing," Mohinder allowed, the warmth of desire creeping into his voice. And yet...

It might be the most logical solution, but it wasn't necessarily the easiest one. "I care for Alcuin. He knows this. I pieced together from things Alcuin said and you did that you care for him as well."

Daniel wanted this. Alcuin was willing. He'd made it clear to Daniel he didn't need this to happen. So be it.

Pushing up from the table, Mohinder released their hands and said softly, "Now is as good a time as any, and better than most." Then he leaned over Daniel, one hand cupping the back of his neck and drawing him into a deep, heated kiss while the other reached out for Alcuin again.