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“You really need to try and relax Leonard.”
“Relax?! Listen here hobgoblin, I was looking forward to this assignment – it was going to be fun – but no, Control had to give a partner; they had to give me you!”
Leonard scowled at the other man, infuriated by the calm stare he was given in response. He had been looking forward to this job but just having Spock here had ruined all of his plans. Any other partner and he probably would have been able to work around the sudden change but he had gotten stuck with Spock, Mister I-wouldn’t-know-fun-if-it-bit-me-and-then-I’d-ask-it-what-it-was-doing. He let out an aggravated sigh and stepped away from his partner to look over the edge of the cliff at the humans below. He couldn’t help the small smile that slid onto his face as he watched them scramble about, building the beginnings of a great civilisation. Leonard and Spock weren’t there to help them though – not directly. They had been given the roles of gods for the new religion these people were creating, ordered to watch over them and keep them on the right track.
“It would make sense to refer to each other by our given names,” Spock’s voice said from behind him and he had to work hard not to grind his teeth together.
“Fine,” he snapped, irritated and just wanting to get away from the other. “Name’s Apollo – god of medicine.”
“It suits you,” Spock replied, but before Leonard – Apollo; he had to think of himself as Apollo – could do more than huff in surprise at the compliment, he continued. “My name is Athene.” He didn’t explain his attribute, for which Apollo was grateful; he didn’t need to hear how pleased his partner was that he’d been given wisdom, or hear any of his ‘wisdom’. Truth be told, he was now just waiting for this assignment to end so he could get as far away from the other as possible.
“Would you please stop laughing? It is unbecoming for a god.” Athene’s voice was edging towards irritated but Apollo couldn’t stop – it was just too funny.
“But…they…they…think you’re a goddess,” he just managed to get out before dissolving once again into laughter. He was practically crying from mirth and he could sense his companion’s irritation reaching critical levels yet he didn’t think he had the ability to stop. Athene must have realised this as well because he just let out an exasperated sigh and walked away. Before he was out of hearing range though, he spoke.
“You do know that you are considered the god of plagues now? The people are quite terrified.”
That shut Apollo up and Athene felt no small amount of satisfaction. That would teach him to laugh.
“Ow, ow, ow!”
“My apologies but I must clean the wound.”
“Anyone would think you’d never done it before,” Apollo grumbled before letting out another shout. The pair were seated in one of the newly built temples, and Athene was tending to a deep gash that ran down Apollo’s chest. The god of medicine was trying not to shake but Athene could see how hard it was for him and felt an odd rush of concern and affection for him. Apollo had rushed to his help when he’d been attacked by one of the lands huge predators. Using his bow, Apollo had killed the beast but not before getting hurt pushing Athene out of the way.
“Thank you,” he whispered, so quietly that Apollo wasn’t sure he had heard it. When Athene raised his head though, Apollo saw the gratitude and worry clear in his eyes. Acting impulsively, Apollo cupped his jaw and placed a gentle kiss on his mouth.
“I'm alright,” he murmured, his fingers unconsciously stroking the delicate skin. Athene leaned into the touch as he continued to wipe at the wound but his touch was different now, almost sensual. Apollo took a deep breath and met his eyes. Confusion shone in them but there was also a longing that Apollo yearned to satisfy. He pulled the other up off the ground and onto his lap, where Athene wrapped his arms around his shoulders. They didn’t look away from each other as they tilted their heads and pressed their lips together. Fire ignited in both of them and the kiss quickly turned frenzied as passion overtook them. They shed their clothes hurriedly, needing the contact of skin on skin. Their breathing was heavy but they couldn’t bear to stop the battle between their tongues for long. They shoved everything aside as they surrendered to emotion and sensation.
When the mission ended, they walked away from each other without words. Neither knew what to say. They had crossed a line and now they weren’t sure where they stood. Leonard went and got drunk as quickly as possible by himself, trying to shove aside all the stupid feelings he had somehow found for Spock. Spock went to Nyota, who welcomed him with a kiss and a candlelit dinner. As he lay in bed beside her afterwards, he tried to tell himself that he hadn’t spent the evening thinking about Leonard and remembering the feeling of the man's lips on his body.