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vulpes-fennec · 9 months

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A Return to Autumn's Roots (3/3)

Summary: Eris Vanserra, the new High Lord of Autumn, has extended a Solstice ball invitation to Elain Archeron and Gwyn Berdara. Will a Court frozen in perpetual change break the stagnant mating bond between Elain and Lucien?

A lil @acotargiftexchange present for @sunbrightheart! I hope you enjoy this as much as I've enjoyed writing this for you! 🎄

Read on AO3 | Ch 2

WARNING: SMUT

He felt her presence first, even though he was on the other side of the great hall.

Elain’s entry had made all the proud bachelors in the room turn their heads, which left Lucien feeling like his hackles were raised. He told himself to approach slowly, with sure confidence, instead of rushing to be the first male to throw himself at her feet.

From the way she was staring at him from across the room, slightly open-mouthed, there was no need for him to hurry. It was clear to the other males that Elain Archeron only had eyes for Lucien Spellcleaver.

Lucien wondered if she was trying to make a statement with her dress, for though the Autumn Court dress palette was typically in hues of red and brown, Elain wore a pale orange-yellow gown that was layered with fine, golden thread that reminded him of a misty sunrise. She seemed to radiate light, the warm tones of her dress bringing out a healthy glow on her pale skin.

Elain’s chestnut brown curls were pulled back with a golden clip, accentuating her pointed ears and the iridescent pearls hanging from them. Pearls? Cauldron…she’s wearing the earrings, Lucien thought with amazement as he bowed and then extended a hand.

“May I have your first dance, my lady?”

“Yes, my lord.” Elain’s bare hand touched his, sending shivers down his spine. She smiled demurely, but her flushed cheeks gave away her emotions. Lucien spied Jurian and Vassa smiling at him from behind a column as he led Elain to the dance floor, with Jurian giving him a toothy grin and a thumbs up. Little did his friends know that he and Elain had already kissed. Lucien could already imagine Jurian losing his mind, then punching him in the shoulder and yelling at him for not sharing the news earlier.

The Solstice ball was in full swing, with ice sculptures, fizzy wine, and richly spiced food in every corner. Garlands of holly and pine, red and gold ribbons, and floating faelights created a festive yet cozy atmosphere. Autumn Court nobility milled about, chatting and dancing.

The waltz swelled, propelling the couples on the dance floor into motion. Lucien tried not to tremble nervously like an awkward adolescent as he placed a hand on Elain’s waist. It was a classic Solstice tune, one he’d danced to thousands of times before. Yet, it was different this time, with his mate in his arms.

“You look beautiful,” he said quietly, dipping his head to whisper it into her ear. She smelled enticing, of honey and jasmine.

“I’m glad the time I spent getting ready paid off,” Elain joked, tilting her head up to look Lucien directly in the eye. “You’ve cleaned up quite nicely yourself. Green is your color.”

“So observant,” Lucien replied. “To be fair, the lady has been caught staring at me on many occasions.”

“Says the male who can’t take his eyes off me,” Elain shot back. Lucien laughed. “You’re a very good dancer,” she murmured, after Lucien spun her round before catching her in his arms again.

“Eris is far better a dancer than I am. Perhaps you’ll be lucky enough to take a turn around the room with him.”

“Oh, I know. And I wouldn’t dare…Nesta is the only one who can keep up with him,” Elain recalled, remembering last year’s Solstice ball at Hewn City. Her sister and Eris had quick-stepped, spun, and leapt for three consecutive dances without ever needing to catch their breaths. Though it would be an honor to dance with the High Lord of Autumn, the prospect of doing so in front of all of Autumn’s nobility had Elain feeling queasy.

***

Elain felt like a foolish teenage girl sneaking out to Lucien’s room in only her nightgown in the late hours of the night. Time passed far too quickly, and before Elain knew it, the Solstice festivities had come to a close. They had just parted ways an hour earlier, having danced the night away at the Solstice Ball. She was supposed to return to Velaris tomorrow morning, yet…she didn’t feel ready to leave Lucien quite yet.

Thankfully, there was no one in the hall to bear witness, and before she could change her mind, she knocked on the door. No turning back now, she thought. She could hear some sort of hurried rustling sound, the quick padding of feet occurring behind the door. A shirtless Lucien opened the door. Gods, did he always have his shirt off in private? She made a mental note to spontaneously show up to his room in Day Court, if she ever made her way there.

“Hi,” she said, the greeting coming out more shyly than she’d intended as she ogled at his sculpted chest and abs.

“My face is up here,” Lucien teased.

Elain coughed, and straightened her back. Right. She came here for a reason. “Let’s pick up where we left off,” she said as boldly as she could muster.

Lucien’s grin was feral. “You don’t need to tell me twice, sweet pea.” He swept her up with his arms into a deep kiss, plunging her into a heady concoction of desire and heat. Elain practically jumped on him, wrapping her arms around his waist and running her hands through his long red hair. One of Lucien’s hands was firmly hoisting her up from her bottom, the other securely on her back. He pressed her tightly against him, as if no inch of her lithe body should be left untouched.

She was vaguely aware of Lucien kicking the door shut behind them as he walked her to his bed. Of how he gently laid her down onto his soft bed, still warm from the heat of his body. Of how his body angled between her legs, and how his hands, tense with restraint, ran along her waist and hips.

Elain wanted—no, needed—more of Lucien. His fervent mouth, his delicate hands, the strong press of his body against hers. His comforting scent of apple and sun-kissed skin, intertwined with the intoxicating musk of arousal. She whimpered lightly when he drew away, both of them panting for the air they’d put on hold while kissing.

Lucien’s face beheld a question: what do you want?

“Is it true that Autumn males fuck like they have fire in their veins?” Elain asked with feigned innocence, biting her bottom lip purposefully to incite a smolder in Lucien’s russet eye.

“Are you trying to find out?” Lucien rasped, his mouth deliciously tickling her ear.

“Do your worst, sir.” Elain let out a squeal of pleasant shock when Lucien tore the front of her nightgown in half with a loud ripping sound, exposing her breasts to the chilly air. His russet eye darkened as he beheld her, splayed out before him.

“Cold?” he murmured playfully, trailing kisses down her neck. Lucien’s finger circled around her peaked nipple once, twice, before massaging her small breast with the warm palm of his hand.

“I expect to be thoroughly ravished,” Elain managed to say in as prim of a voice as possible. She arched her back slightly, wanting to meld her bare skin against his. Lucien chuckled, brushing the hair out of her eyes.

“It’s always the most proper of ladies who are the naughtiest.” He moved back down the bed, with Elain instinctively spreading her legs wider to accommodate. Lucien noticed and laughed softly, running his broad hands up and down her bare calves. He pushed the rest of her nightgown up around her waist, momentarily speechless when he saw that she wasn’t wearing anything underneath. “Just as I thought,” he half-choked.

Elain clapped a hand over her mouth at the moan that escaped it. Lucien had licked her like a male starved, groaning loudly upon his first taste.

“You can be as loud as you want, my lady,” Lucien said, emphasizing the last two words teasingly. He looked up with a devilish grin. “The room is spelled to be sound-proof.” He licked her again, more slowly and deliberately, making Elain cry out, louder this time. Graysen never went down on her like this before, so she had no idea how to act. Whether she was supposed to be doing anything…

Lucien pushed a finger inside, slowly sinking it into her warmth and driving coherent thoughts from her mind. She absolutely couldn’t do anything while Lucien was pleasuring her. Good gods…if this was just his finger…how would his—Elain moaned when he curled it slightly.

From where she was lying down, Elain couldn’t see what Lucien was going to do next, which was why the sensation of his tongue on her as he was fingering her came as a surprise. Elain writhed again, core tightening with each stroke of his finger, each lick of her clit. She wasn’t even aware that she was making sounds until Lucien rumbled against her inner thigh, “use your words, sweet pea.”

“Please, Lucien.” Her legs were beginning to shake. “Please…oh gods…Lucien, I can’t keep going— ah!” Elain’s words turned into incoherent babbles when Lucien’s tongue brought her to completion. Waves of pleasure rippled through her body, ebbing away until she was pliant and soft, like lying on clouds. “Shit, I’m so sorry,” Elain gasped, realizing that her thighs had clamped tightly around Lucien’s head when she came.

“Don’t be…I consider myself lucky to have suffocated between your legs,” Lucien said with a wink, licking the last bit of her slick off his lips. He sat up, hooking her ankles over his shoulders and stroking her pale legs. He regarded her as if she were a goddess, more precious than anything else in the world. Elain shivered with greedy anticipation at how primal he looked in the moonlight: gleaming red hair, broad-shouldered and muscled, and teeth flashing white.

“You’re beautiful,” Elain murmured. To her surprise, Lucien blushed. “Now take your pants off,” she demanded with a smile.

“Such a manipulative vixen,” Lucien sighed, undoing the buttons on his pants. “Very well, then.” A rustling sound, a shifting of the bed as he tugged the material off…and Elain’s jaw dropped when she saw Lucien’s cock. Long, hard, and already leaking with precum…she swallowed, wondering how it was going to fit. Noting her hesitation, Lucien pressed a kiss to her nose. “We don’t have to do this if you don’t want—”

“No. I want to.” Elain put her hand around his neck and tugged him down so that they were nose to nose. His bare chest brushed hers, hot and musky and chiseled. Gods, she needed him more than anything at the moment. She could already feel the tip of Lucien’s cock brushing against her inner thigh, smearing precum along her skin, as if reminding her that this was really happening. “I’m just…it’s just…having sex with my…my mate.”

She’d never referred to him so directly before. I’m having sex with Lucien, holy shit, she thought. I’m having sex with Lucien. Fueled by the adrenaline, her heart was beating so rapidly that she was sure Lucien could hear it.

“Don’t be nervous…it’s just me.” Lucien swallowed thickly. “If you’ll have me tonight.” Elain’s heart broke a bit at the word “tonight”, as if Lucien didn’t really think she wanted him for more than a quick fuck.

“Yes.” He took her hand in his as he fitted himself over her entrance, squeezing it momentarily when he began to enter her. Elain sucked in her breath sharply at the brief hint of pain, which flashed through her core when the head of Lucien’s cock slipped in. He froze.

“Elain?” He asked, brow creased with worry. “You winced.”

“I’m alright, Lucien,” Elain whispered, cupping his face. The amount of care and concern on her mate’s expression…she knew in her heart that he would never hurt her. That she would be safe with him. She hooked her ankle around the back of his muscled thighs, a subtle signal that she was truly fine. “I want you. I want you to keep going, please.” Lucien could only nod and continue, moving slowly and allowing his mate to adjust to his length.

Lucien kissed Elain deeply when he was fully inside her, his hand gently resting over her heart. Feeling just how quickly it beat for him. “You feel so good, Elain,” he said, voice thick with emotion.

“You too, Lucien,” Elain whispered back. She sighed when Lucien began moving, slowly and tenderly, making her feel deliciously full. She squirmed pleasantly when he nipped her ear, moaned when he kissed the hollow of her neck. “Lucien?” she said after a few moments of gentle lovemaking.

“Yes, my lady?”

“Whatever happened to fucking like you have fire in your veins?”

Lucien smirked and suddenly thrust into her, hard, eliciting a little oh from Elain’s lips. The force with which she jolted back into the mattress, the driving of his cock into the deepest parts of her made her euphoric. “You like that, don’t you, my lady?”

Gods, every time he said “my lady” in that sensual rumble brought Elain closer to cumming. He pulled out and thrust into her again.

“Just like this,” she panted out. Lucien’s sharp thrusts seemed to drive every rational thought from her mind, heightening her senses to the point where nothing else mattered but his very being. The cool strands of his hair, brushing against her peaked nipples. His mouth, expertly kissing her neck, her collarbones, her shoulders. His scent, driving her wild. His voice, unabashedly praising her.

“Fuck,” Lucien groaned, his hips snapping roughly against hers. She could hear the entire bed slam against the wall with each thrust. “You’re so fucking perfect, Elain.”

Elain raked her nails down Lucien’s back as he pounded her harder, unable to keep her moans of pleasure contained. “Yes, yes, yes, Lucien,” she cried, each word punctuated by a thrust. Even though they were skin-to-skin, even though he was inside her, it was not close enough. “I want you to come inside me.”

Lucien’s eyes grew wide at her request. “Wouldn’t you—”

“Gwyn gave me her contraceptive potion this morning,” Elain gritted out, squeezing Lucien’s cock lightly with her pelvic muscles. He swore, hips stuttering. “Please, Lucien.”

“Shit,” Lucien muttered, picking up the pace again. “So godsdamn perfect, sweet pea.” Her mate’s pace faltered as he neared the climax. Elain pulled Lucien down, kissing him hard as he came, groaning “Elain” raggedly into her mouth.

She was so utterly worn out, she didn’t notice Lucien had left until he came back from the en suite bathroom with a warm damp cloth. “Impeccable,” Elain laughed softly as Lucien carefully maneuvered her limbs so that he could wipe her down. She was content to lay like a relaxed cat while he took care of her. “Incredible.”

Lucien smiled broadly as he lay back down next to her. “I’m glad my performance lived up to your expectations. Sorry about your nightgown.”

Elain chuckled, sliding the tattered garment off her body fully and tossing it to the floor. “I’ve always wanted a bodice ripper moment, anyways. I’ll keep it as a Solstice present.” Her mate propped his head up with an arm and laid his other arm across her stomach, stroking her waist. Elain traced the curvature of his chest, the lines on his abdomen, marveling at the muscles of Lucien’s figure.

“Will you stay the night?” Lucien asked.

Elain glanced up at him. “Do you want me to?”

“I’d be lying if I said no.” Lucien admitted, with guarded hope in his eyes. Elain pressed a chaste kiss on his shoulder. “But I also understand if you’d prefer to sleep alone.”

“I shall stay,” she murmured, snuggling up against her mate, savoring the warmth he provided after the post-coital heat evaporated into the chilly night air. I could get used to this, she thought contentedly, as Lucien’s steady heartbeat lulled her to sleep.

***

They’d slept peacefully, so deeply that they forgot to wake up in time to take baths and wash their intermingled scents off. Lucien knew he and Elain had a dramatic welcome in store for them during breakfast the very next morning, but that didn’t quite prepare him for the stunned looks exchanged between his parents and his brothers.

Eris nearly fell out of his chair mid-bite. His father began clapping loudly and whistling, winking at Elain. His mother hid her smile behind a napkin. His other brothers began to chuckle and shake their heads. Gwyn gasped. Meanwhile, Jurian and Vassa were looking around, confused, their human noses too weak to pick up what was going on.

“Enough!” Lucien snapped, his face flaming hot. He glanced down at Elain, worried that his family was making her uncomfortable. Though her face was pink, she only grinned back. And intimately placed her hand on his lower back, pushing him towards the table.

“Hurry up, I’m starving,” she giggled. “Oh. Oh.” Jurian’s jaw dropped, as he understood what was happening a minute too late. “You two just had sex?”

#elucien #elain archeron #lucien vanserra #acotar gift exchange #elucien fanfic #acotar #merry christmas everybody!

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