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This series isn't that popular, but I like writing it so whatevs. I'll go back to writing regular erotica one day. I have a Mike and Max chapter that's been lingering in drafts for months now.
Less action, more world building. I'd still call this an urban fantasy with erotica in it, not an erotic urban fantasy. This is about story and character more than sex.
I should have maybe put this in the transgender category, but there's still cis gay male sex scenes in here, too. Categories are hard. I don't like sorting people into boxes. I just want a "queer" category so I don't have to pick.
Anyways, nonbinary character who uses all pronouns ahead. I am also a nonbinary character who uses all pronouns. Weird comments about enbies and the wide and wonderful ways in which we relate to gender and sex get deleted <3
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Elijah
I chose the temple.
Flynn was unhappy about it, but I'd seen enough of his suffering to know that wasn't the life for me. I would happily serve with temple regulations in place. Owen gave me a list of five temples to choose from. None of them seemed all that convenient or economical for him to help me reach.
"Any of these," he said, tapping the paper meaningfully. "I'll take you to any of these."
"You can just drop me off at the closest one," I started. Owen silenced my argument with a pointed scoff.
"Shark, be nice," Flynn admonished him. "He researched the best ones. These five should be the safest. No scandals, no runaways, they don't sell prophecies, and they aren't incorporated so you can't be passed around between locations."
"You really went to a lot of trouble," I said warily. "I didn't expect you to."
"Kid, I promised Bunny that we would find you, save you, and help you find a safe place to live," Owen pointed out. "I
always
give Bunny what he asks for. So, take your time and pick a temple. You can use my laptop to look them up to get a feel for them. We'll visit any that interest you to see them in person."
I swallowed the lump in my throat and whispered a thank you.
...
"Will you visit me when I pick a temple?"
Flynn looked up from where he was crouched on the ground, examining a cluster of orange mushrooms. We were out in the woods. Flynn was happily explaining plants and animals we saw as we walked. I liked spending time with him like that. I'd never had a brother, but I imagined that hanging out with Flynn might be close to having one.
"I'll try," he said. "Some temples are too heavy for me to spend any real time in."
"Heavy?" I asked. He didn't wince when I asked for clarification anymore. That was nice. Like maybe he considered me a friend.
"Um, too many spells in too many layers," he said. "Like being underwater. You go too deep, it gets too heavy."
"So you'll pop?" I chuckled.
"Hmm, I'll pass out and drop all my occlusions. I'll be detected and end up in a TE cell," he said.
That was the only thing keeping me from making my choice. Flynn's mentorship was unlike anything I'd ever had in my life. Education was intentionally limited at the old temple that held me to keep us under control. Flynn was happy to teach me the esoteric writing systems and obscure rules of magic right along with all his facts about the world.
"You're coming with us to visit those two I wanted to see, right?" I asked. "Tell me which one is better for you."
"Don't choose based on me!" Flynn insisted. "Pick the place that's best for you."
"Um, Flynn," I started warily. He was back to poking curiously at the lichens and moss, observing something that was beyond me. "Maybe this is me being needy and dumb-"
"You aren't needy or dumb," he interrupted. I rolled my eyes. He gave me a pursed look, but let me continue.
"I would really like to stay in touch," I said quietly. "I haven't ever had a friend before." I felt heated embarrassment at the confession, but Flynn just gave me a crooked smile.
"Of course we'll stay in touch," he said happily. "Shark and I have to travel a good bit, but he'll figure out a way we can talk if I ask him. And I'll visit if I can."
"Then, picking a place where you can visit is important to me," I concluded. Flynn didn't say anything, but he grinned at me and tossed an arm around my shoulders. I'd gotten used to him not always knowing what to say over the months I'd spent up there on the mountain.
Owen and Flynn left for their work fairly often, leaving me to entertain myself with my crow for company. Flynn had warned me that I could pray, but I absolutely could not consecrate any holy space to my god. His goddess was tolerating my presence in her holy sanctuary fairly well, though I suspected Flynn had made some kind of agreement to keep me there. That was ok with me. My god was much less demanding than his.
I loved the quiet. I loved seeing the sky and the stars. My crow stayed close, flitting off during the days to do whatever it is that crows do. She slept perched on the mantel over the little cot Owen procured from somewhere for me. I hoped she would stay with me permanently, but I knew she was a gift, not a pet.
Flynn and I made our way back to the cabin. Owen was on the floor with his laptop on his knees and an annoyed look on his face. That was his most noticeable oddity. He always sat on the floor when he worked.
"All good, Shark?" Flynn asked. Owen sighed and pulled his headphones off.
"I can't go to the temple tomorrow," he said. "You two can go or I'll move the flights around for when I get back."
"Where are you going?" Flynn asked. He sat on the couch behind Owen and leaned down to kiss his cheek.
"Lucas got himself in trouble and, apparently, I'm his deadswitch," he said. "I've got to go to Monaco and bail him out. I'll probably have to wipe his record for him, too."
"Did you ever tell him we sniped Elijah?" Flynn giggled. God, they were cute together. Like seeing otters hold hands.
"Maybe I will once the kid is under a new temple pledge," Owen said with a shrug. "He won't be able to cash the bounty after that."
"Is there still a bounty on me?" I asked curiously.
"Yeah, you're a runaway oracle," Owen pointed out. "Even TE would pay out a nice bounty on you right now."
"Oh," I said quietly. Icy fear was sloshing in my chest. "What if those temples won't let me join? Will they turn me in?"
"Probably not. Legit temples don't have much love for prophecy factories. If they do turn on you, I'll bust you out," Owen answered. He snapped his laptop shut and stood to stretch. He and Flynn made an odd couple from the outside. Owen was notably small for a man, with features that would more comfortably be termed 'pretty' than 'handsome'. He dressed plainly in shades of unremarkable gray most of the time. Flynn, on the other hand, was tall enough to look gangly, covered in rough tattoos and scars, and wore battered, paint covered clothes. He dyed his hair whatever color he liked that month.
"So? Am I rescheduling or are you two going without me?" Owen pressed. "I need to head out as soon as possible."
"I'll take him," Flynn said. "But come home soon?"
"As soon as I can, Bun, " Owen reassured him. "You be careful."
Flynn pulled Owen into his lap to nuzzle his face into the crook of Owen's neck. Owen chuckled and stroked his bright orange hair.
"Why so clingy?" he said.
"We haven't had a night apart since we met," Flynn mumbled.
I felt awkward to witness that conversation, so I let myself back outside to watch my crow play in the wind.
...
My crow didn't love a plane ride, but she would settle in a crate that fit under my seat with only the slightest amount of fussing. I was glad about that. I didn't want to visit temples without her.
None of us liked the first temple we visited. Flynn was jumpy and nervous as a nice enough priestess walked us through to the sanctuary. We both sat in the pews and watched the acolytes performing a quiet meditation ritual at the altar. My crow paced the back of the pew irritably.
"This place feels weird," I whispered to Flynn. He gritted his teeth and nodded.
"Too many spells," he said softly. "And they don't fit together. You're feeling the discordance. Most acolytes wouldn't feel it, it's, um, like infrasound? Too low to hear, but sensitive people can feel it."
"Oof, I can't stay here," I said. A shudder ran down my spine.
"Yeah, let's go," he agreed.
We started the walk back to the hotel. Flynn rarely rented a car or called a taxi unless I asked him to. There was almost no distance that he considered too far to walk. I tried not to ask for concessions like that unless it really was just too far for me. He had some kind of superhuman resilience to him that I did not.
"Why can I feel the infrasound thing?" I asked him after a long, comfortable silence.
"It's not really infrasound," he corrected me. "It's similar. Discordant spells."
"Ok, why can I feel the discordant spells?" I amended.
"Because you're a prodigy," he said with a shrug. "Same reason I can. We're sensitive. There's something different in us. Like tetrachromacy. Some people can just perceive more than others."
The second temple we visited after a long flight followed by a drive through impossibly tall trees was stunning. Flynn grinned as he looked up at the large, timber framed building set back in the trees. More buildings could be seen beyond it, all enclosed in a log fence meant to delineate holy space more than to keep anyone out. There were aviaries at the front of the building filled with owls, pigeons, and crows all tended carefully by people in priest robes. The priests greeted us as soon as Flynn walked up to the mesh to look at the birds.
Maybe I should have been surprised, but it wasn't that shocking when the big barn owl snoozing closest to Flynn blinked awake to examine my friend. It immediately moved closer, hooting softly at Flynn as though it was greeting him.
"Hello to you, too," Flynn replied. "Oh, you're a handsome guy."
It might have been my imagination, but it almost seemed like the owl puffed up proudly at Flynn's praise. Flynn chuckled and waved goodbye to the birds to continue into the temple.
