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Armand could go days without resting. An ancient didn’t need that much sleep, and he kept forgetting to anyway. A vampire was most vulnerable when committed to coffin, which was the main reason covens slept in the same room or that lonely vampires slept underground in secluded areas. Armand despised the coffin. Not the actual casket! That was quite comfortable to lie in, but the idea of his senses lowering to allow him slumber was entirely too disconcerting for him. The days he was forced to rest due to his powers weakening, he only slept precisely as many hours as it was necessary to sustain him for another good two to three months. He refused to do that otherwise.
Daniel was no ancient, though. He had indeed managed quite well on his own after Armand turned him; his sleep schedule being a little better than that of a newly turned fledgling, but he still needed proper rest like any other normal vampire. Ancient blood does wonders for the freshly turned, but no miracles.
Once the two of them had finally settled their arguments and Daniel finally convinced Armand to not run away again, they had started getting accustomed to a routine. Armand seemed to remember Daniel’s down to the smallest detail. Daniel, on the other hand, was still dazed from the restoration of his memories and had trouble remembering Armand’s. Every hour of the day, he spent trying to recall Armand’s quirks and paying close attention to whatever the gremlin was doing or saying to get clues.
He was pretty good at it, reading him like an open book in fact.
Armand was a locked box full of emotions and knowledge. A box that had always been slighted about its contents, yet immensely admired for its beautiful and alluring exterior. The lock was tricky. It could open for a millisecond and close immediately upon the recognition of its opening. Daniel had worked past that. The lock finally shattered, the lid hanging loosely over the edges of the box, opening with more confidence each time.
Armand was feeling safe with him, yet not safe enough to sleep properly. Daniel vowed to change that.
Daniel had fed on his own tonight while Armand busied himself with his iPad. He knew, of course, that Armand had used his strike on his favourite game as an excuse to not go outside. The real reason behind it all was that his powers began to weaken as his tiredness resurfaced.
“Hey boss, what’s up?” Daniel said, taking his sunglasses off and resting them on the table nearby. He then proceeded to take off his leather jacket as his eyes remained fixated on his maker, who was draped over the living room’s sofa, playing on his iPad while the TV was working in the background.
“Mmm good. How was dinner, beloved?”
Armand’s amber eyes fell upon Daniel’s as the words left him languidly, his eyes tired, as if he would fall asleep right then and there.
Daniel paced over and stood behind the couch, leaning in to kiss Armand’s parted lips. Armand’s own closed around them, his tongue flicking over the smears of blood left on the inside of his fledgling’s mouth. Daniel’s hand came to push back a few stray locks of dark hair as they parted.
“Too sweet for my taste,” Armand smiled up at him, his eyes looking directly into Daniel’s.
“What can I say… I have a sweet tooth.” Daniel caressed Armand’s cheek before walking lazily towards the kitchen to run the sink. There was a pause as he finally reached the furniture before Armand raised his voice with his head tilted in question.
“Is mine-”
“Yes, yours is the sweetest.”
Daniel gazed up from where he was washing his hands, specifically his bloodied nails, taking in the surprised image of his maker. Armand’s face turned pouty, and Daniel couldn’t help but smile.
“What, babe? You ask the same question every damn time!”
“And you seem to have an answer prepared all the same, beloved.”
Daniel huffed a laugh as he closed the sink and took a towel to wipe the droplets off.
“Come on, man, I don’t wanna fight!”
“Mhm…”
Daniel quirked a brow when Armand simply returned to scrolling on his iPad. He threw the towel back on the counter, and with vampiric speed, he was back at the sofa, planning to sit with his maker. Armand didn’t make space for him as he’d usually do.
“You angry, babe?”
Armand glanced up at him absent-mindedly, “No.”
“...Sure.” Daniel said, prolonging the ‘s’ sound, “Let’s go with that.” He gently lifted Armand’s legs from where they were resting on the sofa so he could finally take a seat for himself. He then lowered his maker’s legs back onto his lap, Armand still not paying attention to any of his movements.
“What have you been up to?” His hand rested over Armand’s ankles, squeezing rhythmically at the joint there before continuing to caress over them, repeating the movement over and over again, till it started becoming a distraction.
“Scrolling…”
Daniel smirked as Armand’s tiredness led him straight into his trap question.
“Babe, you told me you’d be playing your game, not scrolling.”
Armand’s eyes lifted from the iPad screen to stare at his fledgling, “I said scrolling. Your memory fools you, Daniel.”
“Uh-huh… yeah sure.” Daniel went fishing in his back pocket for his phone.
“Um, have you seen my phone?”
“In your jacket.” Armand’s gaze never left the screen, but Daniel still caught the sleepy blinking of his maker.
“Oh yeah, lemme just,” it was when Daniel tried to push Armand’s legs off of his own to go pick up his phone that Armand hastily let the iPad rest on his abdomen before staring at Daniel’s jacket. The phone came flying on top of the couch, hitting Daniel’s hip in a matter of seconds.
“I told you, your memory is fooling you.” Armand’s face was full of smugness at his comment, making Daniel roll his eyes, slumping back against the sofa.
“You woke up with an attitude today…”
Armand glared at him, his amber irises burning through Daniel’s own.
“Oh yeah, I forgot. The Great Vampire Armand doesn’t sleep. He is scared of nightma-OUH!!”
Armand kicked him straight in the groin, causing his fledgling to jump forward, seizing Armand’s ankles bruisingly tight to hold them in place.
“Fuck fuck that hurt…”
“Of course it hurt.”
Daniel stretched, still holding a death grip on Armand’s feet to avoid any more violence, before he picked up his phone and relaxed his back on the sofa again. They both went back to scrolling, the soft sound of commercials playing on the TV changing the colours of the room around them.
It hadn’t been over ten minutes of Daniel scrolling lazily on his phone, literally becoming one with the sofa, when Armand had rested his temple on the sofa’s pillow. The adjustment was done so unhurriedly that Daniel almost didn’t catch it. Another indication that his maker didn’t wish for him to know that he desperately needed to go to coffin.
Let it be for a few more minutes…
Daniel scrolled on socials for a while and then decided to play Wordle, see what other alien words he was meant to know based on the game. Armand always guessed them in only three tries! It was rather embarrassing…
Again, after a while, Daniel caught from the corner of his eyes Armand’s hands loosening their grip on the iPad that was now close to falling. He turned his head slightly to see Armand’s eyelids flutter close, a curl falling in front of his right eye.
He went as unmoving and as rigid as a statue, so he wouldn’t wake him. He wanted to look at him properly for a while longer, payback for all the times Armand had stared at him sleeping before.
Armand’s hair was tousled as per usual, curls here and there falling unruly to frame his face. He wore an onyx grey linen shirt with matching linen pants, as always, oversized for him to be swimming in them. Daniel was sure the gremlin simply didn’t know measurements. There was no other explanation.
Armand’s eyes flew open, falling immediately upon Daniel’s.
“You know you don’t get extra points for staying awake, right?”
Armand lifted his head and grasped the iPad back in his hands, straightening up as if nothing happened, “I might.”
Daniel chuckled, his voice hiding no ill intent, “By who, baby?”
Armand parted his lips to form a witty reply, yet no sentence was offered to Daniel’s teasing.
“You are falling asleep.”
“I am merely relaxed.”
“You are horizontal.”
“Relaxed.”
Daniel set his phone on the coffee table, patting Armand’s legs in the process. He straightened back up, extending his arm as an invitation for his maker to crawl closer.
Armand set his iPad on the sofa before crawling into Daniel’s embrace, his pants riding up on his calves with his movements. He rested his head on Daniel’s shoulder, who brought his hand to play with his maker’s hair.
“Sweetheart, you are tired,” Daniel’s voice came as a whisper near Armand’s crown.
Armand’s breathing went slower, seemingly ignoring Daniel’s comment, “You are warm…”
Daniel twirled a curl around his pointer and middle finger, “That’s the tired talking… You know I just drained an asshole.”
“You... are playing with my hair…”
Daniel stroked Armand’s head before catching another curl to play with, “You like it when I do that, huh?”
Armand’s eyes closed again, chasing Daniel’s touch. His voice came out soft, almost child-like quiet, “Yes…”
Daniel smiled, pressing a kiss on Armand’s head before his palm rested on his maker’s shoulder to squeeze him closer the way he knew he liked it. His eyes fell to the TV that was currently playing a cereal commercial.
Still, Armand’s eyes were soon wide open again, looking at the TV as well, falling in and out of sleep, his mind refusing to give in. Daniel’s hand began a slow rocking motion at his shoulder before petting him reassuringly, repeating the movements again and again.
He let the silence and the lowered sound of the TV take over the room for a while, in case Armand gave in easier than expected. Daniel wasn’t so lucky. About five minutes into their cuddling, Armand was still fighting.
“Baby, you are safe…”
“I know…” His voice came out breathless, filled with guilt.
“Shh, it’s okay, it’s not easy to relax… Just close your eyes.”
Armand tried to look into Daniel’s to check his expression, but his fledgling’s hand didn’t move to allow him room for it. He simply swallowed and closed his eyelids.
There was a pause. Armand raised his voice again.
“... keep talking.”
Daniel’s short laugh echoed in the room as he kissed Armand’s hair again, “You got it, boss. I am not going anywhere, I stay right here till you fall asleep.”
“And after…”
Daniel stroked Armand’s hair, which caused the latter to exhale a soft breath, “And after baby, ain’t going anywhere.”
Daniel continued murmuring soft praises and affection right into Armand’s mind. He was really trying, his eyes closed, clearly falling asleep, his body going numb.
After a while, Daniel lowered his voice and didn’t speak again. Armand didn’t protest; his breathing had stopped, imitating the corpse-like state vampires went into during sleep. His hand remained unmoving on Armand’s shoulder, enjoying the closeness, feeling his warmth cover his maker’s colder body. He did it! Armand was asleep!
The challenge now was to take him to his coffin before he himself went to bed. He decided it was best for Armand to sleep there. It would allow him space, offering him a sense of security and safety due to its closed lid.
Now, how does one pick up the gremlin without waking him? Oh well, he’d think about that a little later, for now he just wanted to revel in the simple intimacy that was Armand’s body pressed against his own.
They stayed like that for some time; Daniel watching the TV commercials play again and again, his fingers rubbing at Armand’s forearm as his maker peacefully napped in his arms. It had been a good thirty minutes when Daniel himself felt incredibly tired. The narcoleptic pull of the sun was getting the better of him, and he felt his eyes itchy with sleep.
Daniel kissed Armand’s head one last time as he brought his left arm to lock underneath his maker’s knees. He swiftly stood up from the couch, crouching to accommodate his maker’s weight in his arms. He brought Armand’s body close to his chest, successfully picking him up from the sofa, reminiscing about times when Armand had done the same for a younger him.
Armand seemed to awake from the corpse-like state and curl himself towards Daniel’s warmth, his arms slowly moving to encircle his fledgling’s neck to support himself, his nose buried in the crook of Daniel’s neck.
Daniel made his way towards the long corridor that separated their bedroom, his office and the coffin room. He stood still for a moment contemplating his decision of bringing Armand to rest in his coffin. Again, he found it the best option.
Just as he was about to pass their bedroom door and walk over to the coffin room, he felt Armand’s fingers tap him on his back. He froze in place, thinking carefully of what to say next.
“Uhm… all good, boss?”
Armand raised his head from where he had hidden, his eyes opening slightly, still heavy with sleep, to look at his fledgling. Daniel stared into the brightly burning amber that was Armand’s eyes, signalling that clearly something was wrong.
“Bed…”
Daniel blinked once. Then twice.
“Shouldn’t… ancients sleep in coffin?”
His maker glared at him, “I said bed.”
Daniel should have been terrified at the anger and demanding tone that his maker had used, yet couldn’t stop thinking of a sleepy cat, curling up in his arms, feisty from sleep deprivation.
He held back his chuckle, afraid of insulting Armand further, and paced back to their bedroom door, pressing the handle open with the tip of his fingers.
The room was strictly decorated with Armand’s aesthetic. Daniel couldn’t have cared less about what vases or lights to use, he’d have liked it even if it had just a mattress to sleep on.
Daniel’s favourite part, though, the one he wished to never change in their bedroom, was the mural of the sky carefully painted by Armand on the ceiling. It was a nice and cosy touch to the otherwise darkly situated room. He hadn’t believed Armand when he said it’d make the space look bigger, but when it was finished, other than the praise he showered on his maker, he had to agree with him that their bedroom looked even wider than before.
Armand was half awake in his arms as he reached the baldachin bed to gently let his maker’s body rest on the soft mattress. He adjusted Armand’s shoulders and head carefully on the fluffy pillows, retracting his hands.
The very moment he stopped touching his maker’s body, Armand’s eyes snapped open, sitting up on the bed, terrified, quickly getting a tight grip on Daniel’s left wrist.
Daniel’s brows raised in surprise at the sudden liveliness. He brought his own hands upon Armand’s colder one before bringing the knuckles close to his lips to press a chaste, reassuring kiss on them.
“Need to change, babe, I ain’t going anywhere, the sun is almost up.”
Armand’s irises scanned Daniel’s face, still weary from sleep. He soon let his head hit the pillows again, his curls bouncing slightly at the impact. He never stopped looking at Daniel, yet that was all Daniel needed to understand Armand trusted him.
He made his way to the dresser across their bed and picked out his pyjamas, making quick work of his jeans. He could feel Armand’s eyes on him, watching his every movement, admiring his back and the tiny grey curls at the nape of his neck as he slipped into his grey sweatpants and black shirt. He threw his outside clothes on top of the dresser, not caring to fold them properly. He’d do that tomorrow. Right now, all he wanted was to be in bed with his love.
Armand, on the other hand, was staring, despite lying his head down. His eyes wandered at the drag of Daniel’s cotton shirt as he pulled it over his head, exposing his body filled with lines Armand had touched and worshipped many times up until now. He watched the stretch of Daniel’s arms that had previously carried him like a precious treasure, straining at his forearms as he tossed his shirt to the dresser. His mind paced back to the way Daniel had taken care of him on the sofa. His strong hand in his hair and the warmth on his shoulder. The realisation landed hot and sharp at how attentive his boy had been with him.
By the time Daniel was walking fully dressed and ever more handsome towards him, Armand was more than awake.
“You alright, sweetheart?”
Armand nodded and spun his head along with Daniel, who was making his way to the left side of the bed. He turned to his side to observe as Daniel sat upon it, quickly bringing his legs atop the mattress.
Daniel turned to look at him. His maker had curled up into himself, gazing up at him through his lashes. He appeared sleepy, yet still, Daniel was sure there was something else. He moved close to Armand, resting his palm on his maker’s dark curls, eliciting a shiver from him.
Armand scooted closer to Daniel as his fledgling pulled the covers over them. They lay facing each other, their bodies mere inches apart, with Armand hyperaware of his fledgling’s fed warmth.
“You seem unfocused.” Daniel’s voice made Armand snap back into reality, the warmth having increased, the tension in his abdomen not yielding, tiredness not leaving. It is too much all that he is feeling.
“I am not…” Armand said his voice betraying him.
“Want me to hold you?”
Armand nodded and moved closer to lay his head on Daniel’s extended arm.
“Better?” Daniel asked, and Armand couldn’t help but notice the worry in the question. Daniel can feel something is wrong, and it’s not helping how lovingly seen Armand feels.
Daniel is confused despite the warmth he feels through their bond. He doesn’t wanna make any advances he is not asked to do. He needs Armand to feel safe. He is not ready for when Armand raises his voice again, slightly shaking in his arms.
“...Please,”
Daniel’s eyes widen at the quiet plea, “Hey, hey, hey. What’s happening? What do you need?”
Armand’s eyes are frantic; Daniel can sense the panic behind them. He doesn’t move yet. He waits for Armand to settle his thoughts, offering him only a smile to encourage him. He knows Armand is vulnerable and understands how bad and risky that may feel for him. He is planning to change that point of view. Make him feel safe and secure. Armand’s legs rub on the sheets underneath, accidentally pushing against Daniel’s.
“I… I want you to touch me.”
“You want that baby?” Daniel doesn’t let his face change drastically, still unsure of how to handle this best.
“Yes.”
“I can take care of you, sure, but you were about to sleep.”
“Beloved, you don’t understand…” his voice came out breathless, wanting to push against Daniel’s body yet still not allowing himself to.
“Tell me, I am listening. My attention is all on you.”
Armand took in a deep breath, “I want…” he paused, his lips parted as he glanced at Daniel.
Daniel nodded, “You are allowed to want things, you want me? Is that it?”
Armand loves and hates it when Daniel reads him like an open book.
“Yes.”
Daniel brought himself closer whilst Armand remained unmoving.
“You have me, I am right here, I can touch you however you want, no shame in that, we are way past that, aren’t we?”
Armand blames it both on his tiredness and on Daniel, with how caring and kind he is, that he pushes a little closer as well.
“Yes, I just- If you do touch me you-” another pause, “I am not in condition to return the favour…”
Daniel’s eyes widened; the widest they had ever gone, “Baby, it's fine.”
“It’s not fine!” Armand’s voice quickened. “I should do the same for you, I should-”
“Armand.” His maker’s sentence was cut short from his name being called.
Daniel gazed into Armand’s eyes as he readjusted properly to rest on his right side, Armand fully lying on the bed, staring at him through half-lidded eyes.
“You are sleepy, you sure you want this?”
Armand’s eyes shone in the dark as he whispered, “Yes.”
Daniel nodded, “I can take care of you without getting something in return, is that clear?”
Armand nodded, his breathing slightly uneven. Daniel brought his hand to cup Armand’s cheek and softly kissed his maker’s lips. Armand melted in his grasp, staring, dumbfounded, when they parted. Daniel’s hand moved slowly to rest on Armand’s chest, starting to massage gently at his defined pectoral, another chance for him to change his mind.
Armand leaned into the touch, a soft whimper escaping from his lips. Daniel’s hand moved lower to run down his abdomen and to rest just above the waistband of Armand’s loose pants.
“You have given me more than enough already, baby, more than I could ever ask for…”
Armand bit his lip as Daniel’s hand pushed inside his pants to softly palm his already hard erection. He instinctively let his palm rest on Daniel’s nape to pull him closer as his fledgling assisted him with his pleasure. His fingers tangled at the grey curls on Daniel’s nape, as every stroke of his fledgling’s hand brought wave after wave of bliss throughout his whole body. His eyes fluttered closed as Daniel took his hand out to spit on it, returning it hastily back to its place. Armand loved the slick glide of pleasure better than anything else.
He could feel his entire being melting in Daniel’s caring and loving hands. His mind finally shutting down as his beloved boy brought him closer to release. Daniel’s fist worked him slowly, focusing on the sensitive head of Armand’s length, which had the latter moaning in breathless pleas.
“Good, good, I’ve got you…” Daniel whispered near his ear, and it sent immediate sparks down Armand’s length.
It didn’t take long before Armand was panting and whispering Daniel’s name over and over like a prayer. His whole body was writhing as he gripped with his left hand at Daniel’s back, catching a handful of his shirt. His eyes fell closed, his head tilted forward as Daniel steadily sped up his hand, his lips buried into Armand’s halo of curls.
“There you go, shhhh… You are so good, sweetheart.”
Armand’s moaning went louder and louder, his hips humping forward into Daniel’s fist as he finally spilt into Daniel’s hand, spasms going all over his body, rendering him completely numb.
Daniel continued to stroke him gently, pressing soft kisses to Armand’s temple, who was trying to catch his breath, his head resting on Daniel’s forearm, visibly drained from all the energy that was left in his pent-up body.
After a while, Daniel removed his now sullied hand from Armand’s pants to pull a tissue out of the box that was on his nightstand. He wiped his hand on it, the white colour stained pink and red, before he tossed it somewhere off the bed, considering it tomorrow’s problem.
“Feeling better?”
Armand kissed him as an answer, and Daniel gave in instantly, their lips touching softly and intimately before Armand pulled off slowly, his hands cupping both sides of Daniel’s jaw.
“Yes, thank you…”
Daniel lifted the covers from atop Armand’s abdomen to check on his pants.
“Can you sleep in those?”
Armand looked down as well before he nodded, “I believe so, yes, beloved.”
“Cool, cool,” Daniel lay back on the bed, kissing Armand’s forehead as his maker lay on his chest. He started stroking gently at Armand’s head, his maker clearly enjoying the attention even more than before.
“The sun is coming up; we need sleep. Will you try for me, boss?”
Armand shook his head in agreement, nuzzling into Daniel’s body.
“I will, beloved.”
Daniel kissed his curls one last time, smiling, “I love you.”
Armand finally relaxed and closed his own eyes, determined to try his best to sleep,
“And I you, my beautiful boy.”