Chapter Text
The gnolls are past them by the time that Molly gets around to really sizing up his new team. He's already examined them in terms of how they fight and what they're hiding- which is pretty well and a lot, respectively- but Molly has other needs. It's not just convenience's sake that makes him look around his own party for a bedmate, but it is a very good excuse.
So he tallies everyone up, which doesn't take much time. Beau doesn't like him and is almost certainly gay, while Yasha likes him but is definitely gay. He would kind of like the two of them to just get together on their own, but he's not pressing the issue. Caleb and Nott have their own platonic lifemate situation going on that Molly doesn't want to get in the middle of; he thinks they're probably a set and a hassle.
That leaves him with one half-orc and one tiefling, and they are fine choices both. Jester is lean and sharp, quick-witted and silly in a way that speaks to him. He and Jester play off each other well, and he suspects that would be very fun in bed. On the other hand, there's Fjord, who is, well, incredibly charming and surpassingly handsome. He and Fjord also have good chemistry, though in a different way; Fjord is impressed by him, and Molly suspects Jester is never impressed by anyone. They are both such good options, and he's almost certain he could have either one if he wanted.
In the end, he literally flips a coin; it comes up heads, so Fjord is his target. His first target, anyway.
It doesn't take long to catch Fjord alone, at a table in one of the many inns they cycle in and out of. Everyone else has gone upstairs, but Fjord is listening to the better-than-average musicians and nursing an ale.
"Mollymauk," Fjord says amiably, as Molly approaches; he sounds relaxed, and Molly can definitely work with that.
"Mind if I join you?" Molly says.
"By all means," Fjord says.
Fjord's attention slides back to the music, and Molly lets him listen uninterrupted for a while. Another song, and the band takes a break to gather up what coin they've made and get another round.
"A reading for a friend?" Molly says, holding up his cards.
Fjord gives him an amused look. "Why not?" he says, before taking a swig of his ale.
Molly shuffles, navigating his cards by feel, and his nail slips into the slotted edge of The Moon. A quick flourish, and he brings it to the top of the deck. "Perhaps not surprising," he says, laying it out. "A good card for those a bit weird."
"From you, I think that's a compliment," Fjord says.
Molly's placed The Chariot next, and he deals that one out too. "Ah," he says. "Very auspicious. That's a card for victory. Now if we place it next to The Moon, that's an interesting position."
"Do you ever get tired?" Fjord says, in the space Molly leaves for him to ooh and ahh.
"Tired of what, friend?" Molly asks, his hands stilling.
"The whole thing," Fjord says. "Acting. Showing out."
"If I did, I wouldn't have lasted very long in the circus," Molly points out.
"Fair enough," Fjord says, though he looks like he doesn't buy it. He bends forward, giving Molly a look that says he's got Molly's number. "Well, you should know that you don't have to perform for me if you don't want to."
Molly thinks it's entirely possible that people's clothes fall off around Fjord on a regular basis. He just wonders if Fjord knows why that is.
"What if I just said we should find a nice quiet spot and see where things take us?" Molly says; just because he's not the first doesn't mean he doesn't want to.
"I suppose I'd say I have a room to myself upstairs," Fjord says.
"Sounds like just the place," Molly says, collecting his cards and tapping them against the table.
Fjord leaves some coin on the table for the hardworking barmaid, and both of them stand. Fjord puts a hand at the small of Molly's back, guiding him towards the stairs to the second floor, and Molly enjoys it, that little touch of possessiveness that bodes well for what's to come.
Jester is standing near the top of the stairs, leaning over the railing and surveying the people below. She's licking a spiraled lollipop that looks quite similar to her preferred spiritual weapon, and Molly is not above watching the movement of her tongue for a moment or two.
"Evenin', Jester," Fjord says, when they reach her.
Jester gives the two of them a once-over and pulls the lollipop out of her mouth. "Are you guys going off to bone?"
"We had a talk about boundaries," Fjord grumbles.
"I didn't agree to having any," Jester says. "I just said I would not be so loud." She gestures around herself. "No one else to hear, technically."
"You can be next if you want," Molly says in Infernal.
"Don't make promises you won't keep," Jester returns.
"I never do," Molly says with a grin. "You can bet on that."
"If you're gonna hit on somebody else while you're taking a gentleman up to his room, it's common courtesy to do it in a language he speaks," Fjord says, sounding unamused.
"Don't be so grumpy right before you get laid," Jester says, leaning up and pecking him on the cheek. "Have a good time, don't get the clap."
Fjord looks suspicious. "Which one of us was that directed to?"
Jester mutters something and taps each one of them on the arm in turn. Molly gets the same feeling he does when she tried to heal him when he was fully intact, like the magic has nowhere to go and just fizzles out. "Neither of you," she says. "Have fun!"
"That's really handy," Molly says, as Fjord firmly maneuvers the two of them away from Jester and down the hall; Molly does have time to reach out and pop her on the ass with his tail behind Fjord's back.
"Only if you're prone to picking up weird people in bars," Fjord says.
"Guilty as charged," Molly says, as Fjord unlocks the door to his room and pushes it open. Molly steps in first; he has his coat off and his swords wrapped in it with a speed that Fjord seems taken aback by, but Molly has his priorities, and he's learned how to make them work together. He sets the bundle down and catches Fjord by the wrist, pulling him inside and pushing the door shut. Molly isn't short, but he does have to lean up to kiss Fjord, which he does eagerly. Fjord seems almost surprised, and Molly feels like laughing. He sticks to kissing instead, and is rewarded with Fjord's hands on his hips, tugging him closer, flush against Fjord's body.
There's no real instant that Fjord takes over; it's more that Molly just knows he has, with the way that Fjord bears him down onto the bed and Molly lets him do it. It's a great place to be, with Fjord over him, one thigh pressed in tight to give Molly some really choice friction. Molly keeps his hands busy; Fjord's ass is admittedly not as nice as Molly's own, one of the many things he's vain about, but it's still perfectly grabbable. He uses his grip to encourage Fjord to rub off against his thigh, and Fjord groans into his mouth and goes where he's led.
Molly is starting to wonder if they're just going to rub off on each other, which sounds like a great idea, when Fjord pulls away. He pushes Molly down into the bed, just once, and Molly knows it's a tacit way of telling him to stay where he's put; he might be offended if it wasn't so hot. Fjord leans back and whips his shirt over his head, and Molly follows the movements of his muscles as he tosses it away. As Fjord's fingers work on the fastenings of Molly's pants, Molly realizes he hasn't so much as taken his boots off. It seems irrelevant; the part of him he wants Fjord to interact with most is but a button or two away.
Fjord doesn't look up at him as he pulls Molly's now open pants down, but Molly's okay with that; Fjord is clearly too preoccupied with looking at his cock, which is a more than adequate trade. Molly likes to think it looks inviting, a darker purple at the head where it's flushed, with the first drops of wetness at the tip. Fjord doesn't seem to disagree, and Molly bites down hard on his knuckle as Fjord takes him into his mouth. He'd known that Fjord wouldn't be the type to fuck around, even while he's fucking around; he starts bobbing his head immediately, letting Molly's cock slide in deep as he sucks. He knows exactly what he's doing, and something is hot about the idea that Fjord has had a lot of practice. Molly's a little slutty, and he likes slutty people; other people who don't hide from their baser instincts put him at ease.
Molly is far more than just at ease; he lets his hand fall away from his mouth, moaning in encouragement. His other hand comes to rest on the back of Fjord's head, his fingers finding very little purchase in the short hair there. That's fine, because Molly likes getting his hair pulled more than he likes doing the pulling; it's backwards that the idea of Fjord pulling his hair sends a jolt through him, given that Fjord is currently sucking his dick, but there are so many possibilities in front of him right now, so much he can have, so much they can do. Molly doesn't know why he immediately started thinking of this as a recurring thing, but for now, he's not fighting it.
Fjord takes him all the way down, and it's all Molly can do not to buck up into his mouth. Maybe Fjord senses that, because he puts his big hands on Molly's hips, holding him down in a way that really, really works for Molly. He melts underneath it, letting Fjord have him exactly how he wants. Molly gasps as Fjord hums his approval, before letting Molly's cock push into his throat. Molly is helpless to resist, every thought flying out of his head except how good it feels, how much he wants it.
Molly is hanging on by his fingernails, clinging to the edge just so that he can have this feeling for a little while longer, but Fjord makes it impossible not to break. Molly's used to being quiet, but he can't stop the half-shout that he makes when he comes down Fjord's throat, like he's surprised by how good it feels, how much he needs it. Who knows; maybe he is.
Molly goes boneless against the bed after he comes, and Fjord licks him clean before pulling away and sitting back on his heels. Somewhere in all this, he's worked his cock free, and he's stroking it quickly, obviously right on the edge from what he's been doing, which is a gratifying sight but not quite what Molly wants.
"Stay just like that," Fjord says, looking at Molly's body instead of into his eyes.
"Don't be ridiculous," Molly says, sitting up before Fjord can react and catching Fjord's cock with his mouth; they did not come all this way for Fjord to just jerk off on his stomach.
"That's good too," Fjord says, in a choked voice. Molly knows he doesn't have long; he knows Fjord is right on the edge, and while the thought of slowing down and teasing it out of him is fun, it's not going to happen. Instead, he pulls out all the stops, his tongue working on the underside of Fjord's cock as he sucks as much as he can into his mouth. Fjord's cock is pleasingly big, and Molly can't wait to get better acquainted with it; for now, it's not as important as making him come.
Molly has barely started good when Fjord moans; it's all the warning he gets before Fjord floods his mouth. Molly just rolls with it, swallowing him down quickly, milking out the last drops. Fjord pushes him gently away, and Molly goes, looking up as Fjord sits back again, looking a little dazed.
"Wow," Fjord says.
Molly grins widely, unable to resist pulling him down and kissing that look off his face. They end up flat on the bed, with Molly a little bit pinned but in a good way. It's very enjoyable, but Molly doesn't manage to stifle the yawn that sneaks up on him.
"Sorry," he says. He's going to offer to leave, but he gets caught by another yawn before he can say it, and Fjord speaks up instead.
"I'd be happy for you to sleep in my bed," Fjord says. He nods down towards Molly's feet. "But not with them boots on."
Molly considers his options quickly. His pack is in the room that Caleb and Nott are currently occupying, but his swords are here; he doesn't think there's anything he'd really need before morning.
"Well, who am I to refuse a warm bed and good company?" Molly says. "Unfortunately, you do have to let me up if you're not into the boots."
Fjord pretends to ponder this, but he lifts himself up. "I guess I can do that," he says, and he starts working on his own clothing. Molly sits at the edge of the bed, working his boots off; no one says anything for a moment, and Molly takes the time to think about his game plan.
There are people who would be perfectly fine with things as they stand. He just had a great time with someone whose company he enjoys, and he suspects he's got greater times to look forward to if he keeps things going this way. On the other hand, there are whole avenues still open, and Molly delights in novelty.
Fjord walks over to retrieve something from his pack, and Molly looks him up and down, admiring the sight.
He'll just have to have them both. It simply won't work out another way.