Sage and Lavender

------Trivel—

Sunlight beamed in through the small gap between the dark drapes in the tavern room, waking up a sleeping Rowan. Clothes and tipped over bottles laid astray on the floor and upon the small table.

His deep blue eyes slowly flutter open, white pupils dilate then contract to thin slits as they adjust to the light stinging his eyes. He tried sitting up in the bed, Harek's heavy arm that draped over him tightened his embrace, pulling his back closer against Harek's chest. Rowan groaned, his hands covering his face as Harek stuffed his other arm under him and nuzzled against his neck.

"Good Morning…" Harek's deep raspy voice rumbled against Rowan's skin, causing hot thrills to tingle in his back as he let out a small embarrassed whine. "Morning. I should return to Eronshi-" "What for?" Harek quickly interrupted.

Rowan's head was swimming with memories of last night, he held onto the bed and tried to pull away from Harek who in turn held him tighter.

"I have to update your father." "Tell him I demanded you travel with me." "I need to go to Yagwern in your stead anyway, like we discussed, but he will be furious if I don't return."

Harek groaned and kissed his shoulder. "I recall… I also recall many other things we 'discussed'." Harek's hands began exploring his body, making Rowan squirm against him. Once he felt Harek's 3rd leg stiffen against his backside he transported himself across the small room and into the chair mid panic.

Harek rolled his eyes and sat up in bed, a deep chuckle coming from him as the blanket slid down his naked muscular form. "Running away now are we?"

Rowan manifested clothing onto himself as he tried to calm down. His body was still sore from their passionate romping that went well into the early morning.

"The wine gave me bravery."

"HA! Oh it gave you a lot more than that. Never had someone shapeshift in the middle of sex. If it wasn't for your awkward movements, I'd have not known it was your first time."

Rowan crossed his legs and rested his chin into his palm as he averted his gaze, his blue skin darkening with a blush. "Can we not talk about it so casually?"

"What are you embarrassed about? We had fun." Harek's voice was enchanting to Rowan, he could still hear the dirty things he spoke in his ear. The praises that drove him to the edge. It was no surprise Harek was such a talented lover with how much he sleeps around. Doesn't hurt that he's a rather attractive man with no preference for men or women.

Rowan's hanging foot tapped, he was very peeved with his own behavior. He let himself get sweeped up in the moment with Harek last night whilst they drank wine and discussed their plans of moving the slaves to a contact Harek has in the desert. Rowan has had feelings toward Harek for quite some time, mostly sexual as a majority of their conversations were arguments. But there was always a fun tension between them.

"Yes. We did have fun…" Rowan admitted under his breath.

Harek scooted himself to the very end of the bed with a rumbling hum, reaching his long arm he grabbed the leg of the chair and pulled Rowan closer. The wooden legs made a loud abrupt scraping sound and wobbled as Rowan shifted in the seat.

Harek's green eyes just locked onto Rowan's blue eyes as he uncrossed his legs and pulled him onto his lap. "Do you regret it?" He asked simply, to which Rowan shook his head.

"No… no I don't. It just… happened very fast."

"Good boy." Harek deeply said, to which Rowan groaned as he settled onto Harek's lap with his arms wrapped around his shoulders.

"I told you last night that I hate that word."

"Then what do you wish for me to call you? Girl? Pet? Slut?"

Rowan gasped at Harek for even suggesting the last 2. "Just, Rowan, is fine for now…"

"Alright. Good Rowan. I'll let you set the pace… You just need to tell me what you want." Harek slid his large hands up his thighs and squeezed his ass cheeks.

Rowan flushed, holding his breath as emotions flooded him he stuffed his face into his shoulder and let out a series of awkward grumbles.

"Mmm so flustered. Are you going to be able to talk to my father in this state, Rowan?" He spoke low and seductively, moving his hands to hold onto his hips with a firm grip as he pressed him down against himself.

Rowan cleared his throat, remembering the things he needed to do instead of being swept up by Harek. Again. He reluctantly pried Harek's hands off of him before he excited him even more. "Give me an hour at most, and I will return. I'll butter Spiros up and get him to agree to having me aid you."

Harek roughly intertwined his fingers with Rowan's as his hands were pried from holding him. "I don't like the thought of you buttering him up."

Rowan raised a brow at him, blushing at his behavior. "I don't like it either. He's disgusting. No offense."

Harek snorted. "None taken. I'm going to take care of this hard on and then meet with Ayden to discuss our plans. Now with you on our side, we can move around a bit quicker." As Rowan lifted himself from his lap Harek unlinked their fingers and wrapped his arms around him. "Unless you want to stay a bit longer and we can pleasure each other… Again."

Rowan was very tempted, but sighed as he shook his head. His fingers delicately run through Harek's silky brown waves, his voice holding a slight tone of theatrical playfulness. "If I'm going to be transporting back and forth I need to reserve my energy. Besides, I'm sure there are plenty here who would love to sate your sexual desires."

A wicked grin grew upon Harek's lips. "Oh? And will you be watching from the shadows, or will you actually join for once?"

Rowan chuckled, rolling his eyes as he began changing his form into the caramel skinned human male Harek had known him as most of his life. "I like watching."

"Oh I know you do. I like when you watch." Harek stood, slipping his hand behind Rowan's neck and pulled him into a kiss as he stood up from the bed. He broke the kiss when he stood at his full height. His hands sliding down his shoulders and the back of his arms, he was strangely sensual as he held Rowan's hands.

Rowan sensed Harek had an odd possessive feeling for him now, he wasn't sure if he liked that. He stepped away from him and winked, their hands slipping away from each other as Rowan's body began to dissipate into smoke. "Don't act like you'll miss me now, we don't like each other, remember?"

Harek grinned, rolling his eyes. "I remember." He smiled fondly at him. Rowan took in his naked sight as he disappeared.

Harek felt lonely in the now empty room. Walking to the window he looked through the drapes, he could see some of his men patrolling the cobblestone paths of Trivel. Harek sneered as he saw the slaves that still worked for their lazy masters who believed they were worthy of treating others like filth. It disgusted him, he hated nobles, hated the ideals his father and those in his bloodline before him fed into enslaving other people to have cheap labor.

He only felt a slight ease knowing the ones he had saved would be going somewhere they could live as people. With Rowan's help, he hoped he could put an end to it sooner rather than later.

He dressed in his armor, heavy chainmail underneath his steel chestplate, pauldrons, greeves, gauntlets and sabatons to match. Emerald green fabric draped across his chest and shoulders, matching his green belt and drape that went from his hips to his knees. Tying his sword to his hip he leaves the messy room and the tavern in search of his second in command, Ayden.

Turning the corner right outside the tavern he found Ayden posted casually up against a pillar. Ayden's hickory brown skin and short coily black hair glistened from the high sun, his amber gold eyes shifted to look at Harek with a wide smile pulling at his luscious lips that were adorned with his neatly kept mustache and goatee. Harek would be a liar if he said Ayden wasn't the most handsome man he knew, aside from himself of course.

"Look who wakes from his deep slumber once more, I knocked on your door 3 times this morn, must have emptied your balls plentiful to have been so deep asleep." Ayden had a smooth and cashmere feel to his voice and the way he spoke.

Giving Ayden a warm pat on his shoulder he begins to walk with him to their storehouse. "I had the most interesting company last night. Come, we have things we must discuss in private. How did your night go?"

"Spent most the night reading the letters from Yarha, it filled me with the most sombering nostalgia. You think I'll ever find love like that once more?"

Harek nodded, giving his friend a tight side hug. "God's would be damned if you don't. My greatest of friends deserves happiness. Even if I have to pry it from Ashuura's greedy grasp."

Ayden laughed heartily, with no lack of melancholy. "I would do the same for you, should you stop bedding half a kingdom in a sennight." Harek huffed, rolling his eyes as he let him go.

They spoke casually as they walked through the back alleys of Trivel, the muddy unkept passages made their steps unsteady. There were 2 of Harek's men, donning his house's color upon their armor, brilliant Emerald, posted on either side of a rickety wooden fence, letting them both through with silent nods.

The entry into the storehouse was a brief walk down some old stone steps, the building was large and had been abandoned ages ago. The duke of Trivel allowed Harek to use it however he pleased. So he did. By keeping slaves hidden within it while a plague infected the elves there.

Once inside the storehouse there was a group of his men playing dice on the floor, they had their hands ready to draw their weapons, but nodded at Harek and Ayden before returning to their game.

Harek went with Ayden to a closed off room to the side for privacy. They both sat in the old rickety chairs that were in it.

"I know I can trust you, but I need to know for sure some of this information I'm about to tell you is going to stay between us."

"Should my lips spill to another's ears, my life is yours to take brother." Ayden spoke without any hesitation, as always.

Harek let out a sigh of relief, not that he had any doubt, he only needed reassurance. "You remember my father's mage, Rowan?"

Ayden nodded with a curious look, shifting forward in his seat. "Yes, he often peeps on you. Odd fellow, but entertaining for sure. Why?"

"He knows about everything." Ayden's face filled with fear and surprise, his palm covering his face as he groaned. "Please tell me.. Spiros doesn't know, does he?"

"No." "Oh thank the fucking gods." Ayden exasperated as he dropped his hand.

Harek continued. "He wants to help, actually." "Seriously?" Harek nodded.

"In exchange that I help him be free of my father." Ayden grimaced. "Oh. That… Isn't going to be easily done."

Harek scooted closer, his mouth just beside Ayden's ear, "He is an Azure, of legend." Ayden lurched backward as if the words stung him like a hornet. "How the fuck-" "I saw with my own eyes. But, no one outside of us is to know." Harek had pulled the collar of his Gambeson to whisper to him once more before releasing him.

Ayden nodded, his eyes drifting as his mind filled with questions and concerns. "We will discuss his… Predicament, later. How does he plan to help us?"

"My father sent word that Yagwern was infiltrated by the Orcs of Vibhurik, he wants us to travel there to investigate before we return home. Rowan will go in our stead while we carry out our plans to travel to the Fool's oasis to meet with Lunarspark."

"So little Rowan plans to go there in your stead, how pray tell? Your father would know if you weren't the one to actually go there, he would need some of our men to go with him for sure, but he looks nothing like you."

"Rowan knows how to transform himself, our men will have to know he isn't actually me, just incase he isn't able to keep up the disguise the entire sennight of travel it takes to get there. But, whilst in Yagwern, I have no doubt the disguise would work."

Ayden seemed skeptical, with good reason. "You say he can… Transform himself?" His eyes were narrowed as he rubbed his chin.

"Yes. Very skillfully." "You saw in person?" Harek huffed. "How else would I know that he is Azure?"

Ayden wasn't sold. "And, how do I know, you aren't Rowan pretending to be Harek?"

Without breaking eye contact or blinking Harek responded, "3 years ago while we were marching through a shortcut in a cave, a head sized spider fell on you and you screamed so hard you shit your britches."

Ayden reddened with embarrassment, nodding with a gruff clearing of his throat. "Right… Good to know you are Harek."

The rest of their talk was based on how many slaves they had currently, how the 'healers' were dealing with the plague spreading, and getting out of Trivel with that many people without the Duke or anyone else getting suspicious.

The plague that was spreading through the elves was nothing more than an herbal sickness, slipped to each elf by one of Harek's men who are stationed and patrolling the town. The elf who ingests it begins having pains, diarrhea, fevers, and vomiting. They would be sent to a healer, an herbalist placed by Harek months prior, and the elf would unfortunately 'die' from this incurable plague, and from the morgue, they were snuck into the storehouse through the sewers. A small price to pay to earn freedom.

Harek had snuck out a smaller group of elves a month ago, this group is twice as large. He'd have them disguised as his soldiers, but that would only work for a handful of them at most, as only a few of the elves were similar in build to them, but their eyes would then prove to be an issue. Bright red eyes were not a common human trait, especially within Eronshire.

—-------------

Rowan had returned 3 hours later, manifesting himself near Harek; he kept himself invisible as he inspected where he was. They were in the market area, Harek and Ayden were patrolling it seemed. Rowan slipped ahead and went behind a stall so he could appear without causing a scene.

Harek caught a whiff of sage and lavender drift by him as he and Ayden walked through the markets in the northside of Trivel. A grin tugged on his lips as he looked around a bit more expectantly. When he saw Rowan's familiar caramel face peer at him through the side of a market canopy, he clapped his hand on Ayden's shoulder and tugged him along as he walked over to him.

"I was wondering when you would show up." Harek said coyly.

Rowan picked up an apple and elegantly rolled it over his hands like a magic ball, bouncing it off his elbow towards Harek, who caught it. "It took a bit of convincing, but I am at your disposal." Rowan looked at Ayden and waved his hand slowly in front of himself, and with a flick of his wrist a golden yellow pear appeared in his hand, and he handed it to him.

Ayden chuckled, taking the pear and rubbing it against Rowan's tunic before he took a bite of it. "Been a while, I'm surprised you remembered I love pears."

Harek scoffed with a half grin, eyeing the apple. "What do you mean it took some convincing? You took longer than you said." Harek wasn't even trying to hide his jealousy, or his annoyance at Rowan's tardiness.

Ayden rolled his eyes and put an arm over Rowan's shoulders. "How about the 3 of us go somewhere to talk? Harek told me some things I would love to talk to you about."

Rowan immediately flushed, walking with Ayden he cast a look to Harek, who stood on his other side. "You didn't tell him about-"

"Oh but he did!" Ayden interjected. Rowan stared daggers at Harek, assuming Harek talked to Ayden about their night of passion, Harek chuckled mischievously as he ate the apple not caring to correct either of them.

—---------------------------

Once the 3 of them were in private they finalized the plans they had been working on.

Rowan was going to disguise himself as Harek, a group of 15 soldiers would go with him to Yagwern and get whatever information they could about the Orcs, and the slaves that were taken.

Harek would leave with some of his men from the main town gates with half of the elves they had stored within caravan's of supplies, while Ayden and the rest of them took the sewer system, they would meet up at the end of the sewer that connected to a large river a safe distance away from the main town walls.

From there, Harek and Ayden would travel to the borders of the desert named The Dunes of Dawn, which was the land the Dawn elves resided in. The border was fixated between mountain formations, with a large crescent shaped town called the Fool's Oasis. This town is neutral, and is the only way to enter into the desert safely. It acts as a hub for trading, and a barrier to keep fools from entering the desert. There are always guides for hire to venture through the desert which is incredibly dangerous and practically unpassable without the aid of a Dawn elf or someone who is very familiar with the Dunes.

Harek has a contact by the name of Lunarspark, a Dawn elf from the kingdom Starpass, located deep within the Dunes of Dawn and within a very dangerous location known as the False Valley, a very large area of the desert where the sands shift with its confusing terrain, and home to many terrifying beasts such as monstrous dune snakes and massive scorpions.

Lunarspark will guide the slaves safely through the desert to Starpass, where they can live freely in the neutral kingdom.

This journey however, is the opposite direction to Eronshire, the trip back home would take 2 weeks. Rowan plans on attempting to make some kind of contact with the Orcs of Vibhurik while they are in Yagwern. He was convinced that the humans of Yaarlarth were in fact a part of this as well since they are currently about to go to war with them. Orcs are very territorial, and they are terrifying foes, but this would be the first time in quite a long while that the Orcs have made any kind of action against Eronshire, aside from skirmishes they were known to keep their distance. But they have been hearing rumors that the Orcs had allied with the humans of Yaarlarth, which would be detrimental should it be true.

Rowan wanted to buy as much time as possible for them to be at Yagwern, going so far as to suggest that their men actually travel to Nual through the tunnels to 'ensure' the passages were not being used by anyone else. Hoping that would be good enough reason to stall them leaving Yagwern before Harek can catch up.

It was all very carefully planned, but seeing as though it was a rather delicate situation, it needed to go smoothly. The one thing that worried Rowan the most, was trying to talk to the Orcs. Based on what he read of them in the scrolls and books from the library in the castle of Eronshire, Orcs were one of the reasons his people were wiped out. And not only his people, the Naga as well.

But regardless of what fears he had, the need to be free was what pushed him along.