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You could see the faint glow of the campfire up on the ridge-line. It wasn't so far from the deep stream you bathed in, and provided a gentle reminder that your friends weren't so far away should nevrons find you. But it was dark down in the stream, only illuminated by starlight and the distant crescent moon. Their pale light shimmered across the water as you waded into it, sending lazy ripples across its cool surface. It'd taken you about a week to grow accustomed to the continent's cold natural pools. Now, you found them refreshing—but it was always pleasant when the stream was a tad warmer than the last.
Gestrals were resourceful creatures, and each of you had picked up a bathing suit amongst other questionably-made necessities in the bazaar. They were thin enough to scrunch into the bottom of your packs without adding noticeable extra weight. It was good for a bit of added privacy if the group wanted to blow off some steam along the rivers after a strenuous day. Though, Sciel preferred the sandy banks instead. Maybe occasionally she'd dip her toes into the water with the encouragement of Maelle or Verso. That bathing suit was still stuffed in your pack. The day had been long, and you were itching to get the grit off your skin and from under your nails. Despite anticipating the first few bracing steps into the water, you still let out a quiet sound of surprise as it pooled around your upper thighs and crept up your lower back. A violent shiver briefly took you. You didn't dare venture any deeper and allowed the water to consume your senses until it no longer had its cool edge.
A breath of amusement came from the riverbank. "Didn't you say the river was supposed to be warm tonight?"
You looked back over your shoulder to Gustave. "It's warm enough. Just—fresh."
His brows did that slight raise they did when he didn't fully believe something.
You shook your head and focused back in front of you, submerging yourself until only your shoulders were visible. The stream was gentle enough that it didn't take you when your feet briefly left the pebble riverbed. You floated for a few moments before the current began to sway your motions.
Gustave's cloak hung from his hand, his jacket pooled around his elbows as he paused to watch you. Starlight filtered through the leaves above causing pale patterns to scatter across his weathered form. The Paintress' creations were growing more formidable the further you went, and today's encounter had been particularly fearsome. None expected it to get any easier from that point onward.
He let his coat fall behind him as he slowly started to shed the rest of his gear, his sights on you the entire time. If anyone could see you from camp, you'd be nothing more than a distant shadow against the water.
You caught the end of his stare, wondering what was taking him so long. But you had gazed upon a man deep in a spate of thoughtless thought with you at the eye of his attention and heart. You wondered if he was aware of his expression, unfiltered and adoring. You smiled at him in encouragement, and the man deeply enthralled with your presence descended from the riverbank. He made it seem so easy in comparison to your slow submerge, testing the water as you went. You were jealous of it really, but not so much when he struggled to hide the sharpness of the water consuming his abdomen.
You waded past him to the cluster of rocks where you'd discarded your gear, and took a rag from your pack. He watched the ridge-line in the distance before appreciating the cosmic scene above. His sights fell upon you once again as you ventured back towards him. Revealing the now drenched cloth from under the water, you motioned for him to turn around. Gustave showed his back to you and released a sigh of relief when you touched it between his shoulder-blades. You moved it across, watching as his skin rose in bumps under the fresh water rolling down his back. The droplets gathered the grime in beads, somewhat cleaning his pale skin beneath.
He called your name softly in a questioning manner.
You hadn't noticed your own pause. You continued to wash his back. "I knew all this would be our fate, yet I can still barely grasp that this is our reality. Everything here is so unimaginable, but here we are walking this path."
He listened on in silence, letting you talk as you cleaned him. Unsure what came over you, you released a sigh and rested your head against his back, gazing down at the gentle flowing water pooling around your stomaches.
"It's not so bad. We've made it further than a lot of other expeditions already." His voice reverberated through his body. You enjoyed the strangeness of hearing it from the depths of his chest like when he spoke whilst holding you close. It was comforting. Probably the only thing stopping you from weeping.
He noticed the shudder in your breath and faced you. "Hey, now." He held your arms, trailing his hands to hold yours so they were suspended above the water. "We're still here."
"And so's the Paintress."
He hummed. "Well, not for long."
The feeling that flourished in your heart could only be described as a smile—one that did not creep onto your face, for the look in his eyes was kind, but his expression hid the worry he had for you. Lune and Sciel might've been the only people who hadn't shed tears on this expedition so far—well, at least not in front of company.
Your attention wandered down to his chest. Mindlessly, you moved the rag across it, cleaning in gentle circles. You rinsed it out, the trickle of droplets becoming lost in the stream's even flow. You repeated your motions, venturing lower until you paused over a patch of paler skin, still reddened slightly around the edges. His wound was healing well and didn't cause him pain no longer, or so he told you. Still, your hesitance persisted.
Gustave took your hand, pressing it and the rag over his scar—an act of reassurance. He guided your motions gently, along with it, washing away your thoughts and fear. He kept you in his sights, burning this image of you into his memories; bathed in starlight as you cleansed him of the day's mishaps. It was enchanting, yet somehow melancholy at the same time. His breath caught as too many feelings made themselves known to him.
You withdrew your touch and moved to his side, running the rag along the ridges and curves of his right arm. Then, you circled behind him and took his mechanical hand, lifting his arm from the river. You worked your way from top to bottom, the only sounds being the flowing water and the sleeping forest.
His arm was long since clean when you finally stopped. Perhaps you were finding excuses to remain close to him—not that you needed a reason. It was as if you couldn't pull yourself from your earlier fight with the nevron. It hadn't been particularly gnarly nor ghastly—just strong. No one had been injured either. Everyone was fine, so why weren't you? It felt like your mind had been left on the harbour of Lumiere and you'd wake at any given moment. The bed would probably be empty already, but you always remembered the warm brush of his lips on your forehead before he left for the workshop. You could still feel his touch.
Gustave broke the kiss to your head and rested his forehead against yours. The rise and fall of your chest fell in time with his steady exhales, a warm blessing in the brief nighttime air. You weren't sure how long you remained like that for, but eventually he moved behind you, keeping his face in close proximity all the while. His soft breaths cascaded across the back of your neck where he placed another kiss before trailing them towards your shoulder unhurriedly as he moved the cloth down your back.
Gustave rested his head on your shoulder, his chest and body pressing against your back as his arms encompassed you in an embrace. He dragged the cloth across the front of your neck, squeezing it so the water ran over your breasts and down your stomach. You shuddered against him, your back entirely warm yet your front exposed to the slight chill. You felt his lips on your neck again, the bristles of his beard taking their place when he nuzzled his face into you. The fibres of the cloth were gentle against your softer flesh as he worked it over your chest, the slight squeeze he gave going almost unnoticed. He washed your stomach, lingering over the curves of your hips as he ventured lower. A jolt of pleasure went through you then subsided. You could no longer feel the cloth, only the pressure of his mechanical fingers against the bundle of nerves between your legs. You melted into him, head coming to rest back on his shoulder.
A long, almost strangled sigh escaped you, and with it, his name.
"Gustave."
"I'm here," he replied softly against your ear.
He held you closer with his other arm whilst his metal fingers worked in long, gentle strokes, hoping to alleviate the strange melancholy that had grown between you. They dragged back and forth, briefly dipping into the shallows of your cunt before tending to your sensitive bud once more.
You wanted to speak, but found yourself voiceless as you succumbed to his much needed embrace. For a moment there, every thought left your mind and only his presence consumed you. But the river still flowed around your forms and the leaves still swayed in their quiet symphonies. The dampness of his body accentuated the trapped heat where his skin met yours, an almost alien sensation from the cool hard fingers nurturing your growing desire. You allowed him to take the burden of your weight, the anxiety in your heart as he held you there, pleasuring you with his touch. It sent a twinge through your core and you bucked against his body in response. Delicately, his mouth grazed over your skin, the movements of his lips as fragile as the air. His fingers dipped into you again, circling around the rim of your cunt, teasing you with the thought of his cock taking its place.
As if your thoughts were one, Gustave parted from you and lead you to the rocky embankment, coming to sit on a large submerged stone. He pulled you into his lap, his mouth against yours and his mechanical fingers slowly pumping into you. His cock was hard against your stomach, your mind flooded with distraction and unable to think—only feel the swell of desire in your heart and abdomen.
He grabbed your hips, his mechanical thumb still pleasuring you as he lifted you to hover above his cock. There were no words between you two, no moans, only the faint sighs of two souls entangled together. You felt him enter you, every part of his shaft until he filled you whole. You shuddered against him, your arms tightly around him as he kept his hold on your hips. He lifted you slowly in the buoyancy of the water, sinking you down onto him again, enjoying the burning heat of your insides as he held you there. His length dragged against your walls, the motions of his engineered thumb causing pleasure to collide with the sensation of his cock. You squeezed around him, eliciting a broken sigh from him.
Gustave's hands clamped around your hips, his fingers digging into your upper thighs so much so that they would leave silhouettes come morning. Your kisses were growing longer, yet further between as you both succumbed to each other's touch. His beard brushed against your cheek, his lips scattering slow, deliberate kisses down your neck and across your shoulder. Your fingers threaded through his hair, the motions of your hips not your own—but his, as he slowly fucked you down onto him. The friction of his shaft sent waves of pleasure through you, your fingers clawing into his back in response.
The water did not feel so cold now, and the chill that had settled into your bones was replaced by an appetite of desire and longing, as if the man currently deep within you could somehow be even further inside you. Heat pooled in the depths of your core, colliding with the languid thrusts of his cock and the hard yet well-trained, tender touch of his metal hand that made you writhe and tense. His motions stayed steady, not succumbing to desperation nor loss of control. He knew your body like one of his inventions, knew how to work it like one of his tools. Knew all the curves and muscles, the ins and outs that could bereft you of woe.
Gustave spread his legs, stretching you out further so he could fill you even more. The current moved around you, its hidden pull caressed your clitoris and struck a strange but pleasant coolness at your joining each time he lifted you high on his cock. It sent a shiver through him, the touch of the water swirling around his member only adding to the sensation. If anything, it made his cock more sensitive and appreciate the warmth of your cunt. He revelled in the slow drag of your breasts against his chest, how your fingers would leave marks as evidence of your deed. He felt the fire of his emotion-fuelled arousal twist within him, building between his legs, how your walls clamped around him even harder now signalling your nearing release. He wanted to make you forget everything even if it was for a blinding second—a second that could clear your mind and make you cry his name.
You clung to him as if you were on borrowed time, burying your head into his neck as the world around you became overwhelming. You couldn't keep your sight straight—couldn't keep your mind focused. All you knew in this moment was the need to release on Gustave's cock as he fucked you slow and wholeheartedly. His measured thrusts filled with ardour, his stern hold, binding. Gustave murmured something to you, a fragmented declaration of his devotion lost to his soft and encouraging grunts.
You hadn't the energy nor ability to reply as he kept you steady, sliding you along his shaft until a haze settled into the front of your mind. It built within you, spreading to your entire being and burning where his cock filled you wholly. Your walls tightened around him and his member twitched in response, his hold on you faltering for just a moment. His concentration slipped, replaced by infactuation. His engineered finger pressed harder, keeping in time to his cock sliding in and out of you in long, ruining strokes. It would be your end, and Gustave would ensure he delivered the release you were in such dire need of.
You came on his cock, hard. Your body tensed, starlight in its own form dotting your vision briefly as the haze in your mind cleared. Gustave couldn't take it any longer and forced you down on his shaft, bottoming out as he allowed his seed to spill inside you. Amongst the waves of your highest pleasure, his warmth filled you until you could feel the pressure, his cock jerking as he emptied into you. His metallic touch lingered against you, enjoying the faint pulse of your surging high that circulated within you.
Mind numb and body sufficiently fucked and satisfied, you collapsed against him. Gustave slid his hands from your thighs, taking in how different your skin felt to his own flesh and metal. He wrapped you in his arms. Water drained from his mechanical joints and trickled down your back, sending another jolt down your spine.
Your head lolled to rest against his shoulder. Your once burdened gaze now harbouring soft adoration for him.
Gustave kept you in his embrace, losing himself to your bare skin against his. He hummed in satiated exertion as his cock softened inside you. It was home to him, a place to cultivate his love when words failed him. He murmured those words of affection that had been broken by his sounds of pleasure into your ear—this time, clear enough to make sense of them.