Souvenirs From Dead Worlds

"What are we doing today?" Kias asked around a mouthful of bread as they sat eating. It was quiet in the tavern. Kias had slept late and then they'd lingered in the bath, so most of the morning crowd had already moved through.

"Shopping." Sam took a swallow of water from his wooden cup. "I tend to go for finely crafted art. Vases, sculptures, paintings, books. Anything that someone with a lot of skill put a lot of time into."

Kias was quiet, and Sam could tell by the fact that he'd actually stopped eating halfway through a meal that it was a meaningful silence. Sam's eyebrows quirked up questioningly. "What?"

Kias' lips, pressed tightly together, twisted uncertainly before he decided to speak. "Can we get some oil?"

It took Sam a moment to figure out why Kias wanted oil and why he looked so nervous about it.

"Oh," Sam said when he finally put the pieces together. "Well, sure, if you want. I don't really know what kind to get, or... I mean, I've never, on any world but my own, so I don't... We use different stuff on my world."

Kias' lips stretched into a small smile, obviously reassured by the fact that Sam was just as awkward about this as he was. "Well, I'm sure Seba would know."

The expression Sam's face contorted into must have been quite comical, because Kias laughed.

"I'm not asking a fourteen year old boy what the best kind of oil to use for... for that kind of thing is," Sam said.

Kias shook his head sadly. "This is exactly what you do to me, you know." Kias took another bite of bread, chewed, swallowed. "You decide how things should be and you try and force them into being that way by acting as though that's how they are. It doesn't work like that, Sam."

"I suppose it's mildly less awkward than asking a vendor and preferable to getting something unsuitable."

"Remember, Sam," Kias said. "Treating someone how you want them to be treated rather than how they'd like to be treated is still selfish, even if you think your way is nicer. It's also kind of insulting. I've been through a lot and I'm guessing Seba has, too. You tiptoe around us, and it dismisses the strength we've gained by surviving through that."

Sam stared at Kias for several seconds, frowning. "How are you so damn wise?"

Kias shrugged carelessly. "You’ve had so many opportunities and experiences available to you. I've only had a few. The few things I do know, though, I know very well. I'm glad you've never had to learn what it's like from my position first hand."

"Yeah.” Sam raked a hand through his slightly damp hair. "Thanks for telling me this stuff. I do appreciate it. I have to admit, you've been much more helpful than I expected."

Kias glanced up as Seba approached and wiped his mouth on the cotton cloth provided. "I don't think I'd have to do much to be more helpful than you expected," Kias said before Seba reached them and interrupted their conversation. Sam's stomach sunk. Yeah, that was a pretty accurate assessment.

Sam gave Seba an unimpressed once over. "I said after breakfast."

Seba let out a huff and glanced around anxiously. "He's being difficult. He has agreed to let me go, but I think it's better if I'm not around him right now."

"Is he going to come looking for you and interrupt our breakfast, then?" Sam knew he was being unkind, but as Seba, along with everyone else in his world, was going to die soon, the only thing being kind to him would do was risk developing an attachment. Short of death or actually disobeying rules, getting attached was the worst thing you could do while on an assignment.

Seba shook his head firmly. "He won't. He thinks you're cross with him and seeing him would only make you crosser. He also thinks you have some important influence you would not hesitate to use." Seba bit back a smile. "For some reason."

Sam's lips slowly stretched into a genuine smile. "Take a seat, Seba."

Honestly, Sam didn't really know why he'd bothered to test Seba on something only Seba even cared about. Sam wanted a tour guide; he didn't care if Seba learnt his language or not. Seba passed, though. Sam had to correct his pronunciation of a couple of the vowel sounds, but he remembered all of his words and what they meant.

It had been difficult to think of ten words that were truly vital. In the end, Sam had settled with hello, goodbye, yes, no, please, thank you, sorry, toilet, food, and drink. He had Seba repeat them, varying their order, as they made their way down to the markets. By the time they reached the first cluster of stalls, Seba hardly even needed to pause for thought before reciting each word at Sam’s request.

"Now you can have the most super basic conversations with him," Sam said to Seba, gesturing to Kias as they walked. "He doesn't know very much more of my language."

Seba quirked his head to the side curiously. "He doesn't speak the same language as you?"

"No." Sam paused to glance over the jewellery on display at one of the market stalls and then, seeing they were of poor design, moved on. "I speak his fluently, though."

Seba dodged around a man carrying a carton of fruit, then hurried to catch up. "Do you think he would teach me?"

Sam frowned at Seba, leaning back against a stall while Kias looked over its contents. "You're already learning one language from me. Do you really need to learn a second one?"

Seba's shoulders went back and he held himself tall. "I can speak eight languages, five of them fluently, and can read and write in three of those. I know I’m not a scholar, but in two years time I’ll be free to choose my own path in life. In the meantime, all I can do is gather what knowledge I’m able.”

"And you would like to add two languages you will never, ever use to your repertoire?"

Seba moved to lean on the stall, out of the way of the street traffic. "I love languages and I love learning. They don't have to be useful."

Letting out a long sigh, Sam went and stood behind Kias, wrapping his arms around him. He was really going to regret indulging Seba as much as he was. "Seba wants to learn your language," Sam murmured into Kias' ear.

Kias relaxed back into Sam's arms. "As well as yours?"

"Uh huh." Kias' hair smelled of soap.

Kias caught one of Sam's hands and played with the fingers. "Do you want me to teach him?"

"That's up to you."

"I will, then." Kias lifted Sam's hand to his lips and kissed it. "Don't forget to ask him about the oil."

Sam released Kias and when Kias turned around to look at him, made a face at him. "All right, I will. Later."

It turned out that Kias' method of teaching language mostly consisted of pointing at things and saying their names, something Sam questioned the effectiveness of. Did Seba really need to know how to say apple, cup, and vase before he even knew the basics? They seemed happy, though, so Sam left them to it.

Sam focussed his energy on looking for items of cultural or artistic significance to bring back with them. He found costumes designed for an upcoming festival, a finely carved flute, a large tapestry, and a small ceremonial dagger. Seba had insisted on carrying as much of their purchases as he was able to, but Sam estimated that if they split their purchases between only he and Kias, they were at about maximum capacity. Sam sighed. Timed to ask Seba about the oil.

Sam cleared his throat, drawing Seba's attention away from Kias' lesson on how to say 'candle'. Sam was having a really tough time trying to stay in character, and since having some level of dignity was in this instance what would be in character, Sam was pretty keen to succeed.

"Yes?" Seba asked in a voice that was infuriatingly sweet and attentive.

Sam didn't know what to do with his arms, so he folded them across his chest, almost certainly just making himself look more defensive. "Do you know where we can buy some oil?"

Seba's head tilted to the side, his eyes narrowing ever so slightly. Sam wasn't sure if he was responding to the question, or the odd behaviour Sam had displayed while asking it. "What kind of oil?"

Kias was biting his lip to keep from laughing, obviously having figured out the topic of conversation from the way Sam was acting. Sam shot him a look of annoyance.

"Whichever is the slickest and the most gentle on skin," Sam finally settled on. Just the right level of vague.

Seba gave Sam an impassive look. "There's a shop just down the road that sells some that should meet your needs."

"Thanks," Sam murmured, following as Seba turned to lead the way. Kias was still muffling laughter with his hand, so Sam showed him his middle finger, not particularly caring that Kias wouldn’t know what that meant.

"Here." Seba held the door to the store open so they could go inside, then followed after them. "Mostly it depends how much you're willing to spend and where you're planning on putting it."

"I think you know where I'm planning on putting it," Sam grumbled.

"Right!" Seba said with a cheery smile. "Price then. They make a really nice refined oil here, but it's a bit pricey. For about half the price you can get twice as much of another suitable kind which will do the job just fine. It depends on your priorities."

"I just spent a ridiculous amount of money on a tapestry of a man fighting a pack of wolves with his bare hands." Which, Sam had to admit, was awesome. "Where do you think my priorities lay?"

Seba shrugged. "It's not my job to make assumptions."

"No, that's generally given as a free bonus," Sam said with a grin, then turned to the shopkeeper who had been waiting impatiently. "One bottle of whatever the kid says, please."

Sam eyed the bottle dubiously as they headed out of the store. He hadn't asked the shopkeeper about it at all, and so Seba's word was the only guarantee he had that this oil wouldn't burn his dick or whatever else he chose to put it on.

"Okay, Kias and I have something we must attend to for a while," Sam said, taking the bundled up costumes from Seba and indicating for Kias to relieve Seba of the rest of his load. "Do you need us to walk you back to the inn?"

"No," Seba said firmly, sounding somewhat offended at the suggestion that he might. "Don't you need my help? Where are you going?"

Sam gave Seba a tight lipped smile. "No, that's all the help we need from you today. Thank you."

"Wait," Seba said as Sam began to turn around. "Will you give me some words before you leave, please?"

So Sam taught Seba how to introduce himself.

#

Kias' arms were starting to hurt from carrying all the things they'd bought and his legs ached from all the walking by the time they neared the city gates. He was sadly out of shape. It felt good to finally be getting some exercise, though. Kias hated feeling weak.

"He's a very fast learner," Kias told Sam as they made their way down the main road at a leisurely pace. "If I had his skill and enthusiasm, I'd be able to speak your language fluently by now."

"He does seem particularly bright for his age," Sam admitted. "It's a pity."

Sam smiled and said something polite to the guards, but Kias could still feel the guards' gaze follow them as they passed through the gates, arms laden with items. Only the very poorest of people would actually travel on foot while carrying things, and he and Sam were clearly not poor. Kias felt a lot better once they'd slipped into the trees next to the road, hiding them from sight.

Kias followed Sam deeper into the woods, stumbling and almost dropping his load a couple of times.

They walked through the woods for several minutes before reaching a large clearing in the trees. Sam stopped and held a hand up to indicate for Kias to stay where he was. After fiddling with the ring on his finger for a few seconds, Sam crossed his arms over his chest and waited.

With no warning, Sam's shuttle appeared before them. Kias jumped back in surprise, actually dropping the items he was carrying this time. At least none of it were fragile; Sam had the glass bottle filled with oil. When Sam laughed at him, Kias glared.

The shuttle was the same as ever, all dimly lit and filled with little flashy lights. It was warmer inside the shuttle than out and it hummed softly all around Kias. Sam shut the door behind them and unloaded the things he'd been carrying onto a convenient surface. Sam then reached up and pulled open a little door right near the ceiling of the shuttle and started stashing the items they’d bought away. He left the oil out. Kias eyed it contemplatively while he handed Sam the things he'd carried.

"So, how are you holding up?" Sam asked as he shoved the last of the items into the cupboard thing, closing the door.

Kias shrugged. "I'm fine. Mostly good."

Sam leant back against the wall of the shuttle. "Mostly?"

"Some things are sad. If there are no sad things, you're probably just not looking hard enough." Kias had averted his eyes, but he looked at Sam now. "But things are mostly good with me right now."

Sam gave him a strained smile. "You've made everything hurt more, Kias. Because it should."

Kias quirked his head to the side, taking a step closer to Sam. "Perhaps I should be the one asking you how you're holding up."

"I'm fine," Sam said. "Just, you know... what you said. It's sad. It was always sad and I knew that and I felt that, but... I wasn't looking hard enough."

Kias walked the remaining few steps to reach Sam and leant in close to him, one hand on either side of Sam's body. "You're doing okay, Sam. You're doing just fine."

Sam let out a long sigh and pressed his body forward slightly against Kias', bridging the small gap Kias had left between them. Kias smiled and wrapped his arms around Sam, more a hug than anything else. Sam immediately returned the embrace, and they stayed like that, pressed together unmoving against the wall, for several minutes.

"You know, there's a bed in here," Sam said conversationally around the time Kias' fingers were beginning to get numb from his wrists being pinned to the wall behind Sam.

"I must not be paying much attention, because I seem to have overlooked the bed you claim to be in this fairly small room." Kias flexed his fingers, trying to restore circulation.

Sam chuckled and carefully pried Kias off, then took a couple of steps to his right, reached up and took hold of something on the wall, pulled down, and suddenly there was a bed. It had been stored by folding it up into the wall. How odd.

"It's a bit small," Sam pointed out, and yeah, it was. Either one of them could probably sleep in it alone well enough, but it was most definitely not a two person bed. Still, Kias was pretty sure he had some ideas as to how two people could make use of it... It was a soft surface and it seemed to be coated in something non-absorbent.

Yeah, Kias had some ideas.

#

Sam hadn't been sure about the bed thing, but the way Kias looked at him suggested he really did not disapprove.

"Well, just let me know what you want," Sam said, sitting down on the bed. "Or don't want."

Apparently that was all the invitation Kias needed, because he was on Sam immediately. Kias' sexual aggression was unexpected, but Sam wasn't about to complain. Kias' knee pressed against Sam's crotch and Kias' lips moved with Sam's.

They had to momentarily take their hands off of each other to remove their own clothes so none of the delicate fabric got torn. Sam was eternally grateful for the simple lace up shoes that were fashionable here, being much quicker to remove than boots. Kias looked about ready to tear his pants out of spite, the tight fabric clinging to his legs and refusing speedy removal.

Sam sat naked on the bed, watching Kias watch him. The look Kias gave Sam was predatory. Kias turned, giving Sam an amazing view of his ass, and went to get the oil from where Sam had left it next to the console. Sam swallowed thickly as Kias headed back towards him, oil in hand.

The feeling of being prey was almost entirely dashed out when Kias, upon reaching Sam and placing the oil beside the bed, leant down over Sam where he sat on the bed and wrapped his arms around him. Kias rubbed his nose against Sam's neck, then kissed it affectionately.

Sam chuckled. "Hi."

Sam shuffled back slightly, giving Kias room to move on top of him. Skin against skin, weight and warmth. Kias felt good. Sam splayed his palm against the back of Kias' hip, fingertips brushing Kias' spine. Kias pulled away from Sam's neck and grinned down at him. "What if I make a mess with this oil?"

"Then we clean it up after, I suppose."

"Okay." Kias reached over and retrieved the bottle of oil, pulling the cork out with his teeth and setting it aside. "'Cause I'm gonna make a lot of mess..."

Kias poured a generous dollop of oil just below Sam's navel, then used his fingers to swirl it around. The oil wasn't warm or cold, but the slick pressure made Sam's muscles twitch. It felt good because it was Kias' fingers, and Sam watching them. It felt good in a way that could almost have been non-sexual, at least until Kias — glancing back and forth from Sam's face to Sam's cock — slowly moved his hand to rub oil over him. Kias' fingers on Sam's cock were sure, unhesitant. Sam's hips rolled, reflexive, and Sam saw Kias' mouth curve from its concentrated line into an answering smile. Kias added an extra dribble of oil directly to Sam's cock and stroked. Sam watched through hooded eyes.

"Um, I have an idea." Kias tapped his fingers against Sam's thigh, a compulsive nervous behaviour Sam had seen him displaying sometimes. Usually not on Sam's thighs, though.

"What's your idea?" Sam took hold of the fingers tapping nervous rhythms on his skin and squeezed them reassuringly.

"Like, uh... hmm." Kias sat back and pushed Sam's knees up. "No," Kias said when Sam automatically spread his thighs, and pressed them back together. "Like this. Can I?"

It wasn't until Sam felt the press of something hot and hard against the dip between his thighs that he understood what was being asked. This was new. Kias twitched against him, and Sam licked his lips. For a blazing second he imagined what it would be like, to be moved against and into like that. "Yeah, that's fine."

Permission granted, Kias poured oil into his cupped palm and slicked himself, then the insides of Sam's thighs. Sam took hold of his own cock and slowly pumped it, feeling pleasantly warm and slightly dizzy with pleasure. Kias' fingers slipped over his balls and the base of his cock as Kias spread the oil. Sam felt his head tip back, and he blinked upward for a second as he took in the sensation. Kias slowly pushed himself between the tight press of Sam's thighs, letting out a ragged breath, and Sam put his free palm against the side of Kias' neck, soothing Kias, feeling the accelerated pace of his heart.

With each thrust, Kias' cock pressed against Sam's balls and rubbed along the base of Sam's shaft, sending electric thrills through Sam's body. Kias had his eyes squeezed shut and was chewing on his lip, intensely focussed on his movements and the sensations they elicited.

Sam watched Kias, the way his muscles tensed, how his face contorted. Sam pulled on his cock with one hand, unconsciously matching Kias' pace, and with the other hand felt the ball of Kias' shoulder, his flexing bicep, back to his neck, tracing Kias' muscles. Already Kias had begun to sheen with effort, his skin all over flushing with arousal. His breaths fell into a panting rhythm, a steady uhh uhh. They were so close that Sam could feel Kias get more and more worked up.

Kias cracked open his eyes to look at Sam. Sam arched his back and squeezed his thighs together tighter. Kias made an incoherent sound of pleasure and his next thrust was harder. With his free hand, Sam ran his fingers slowly across his own chest, circling a nipple as Kias watched. Kias growled, his hips jerking quickly. Sensing Kias was reaching his climax, Sam increased the speed of his hand on his cock, abandoning his slow and steady method.

"Sam," Kias exhaled, breathy. "Can I..." He hesitated. Sam made an encouraging noise. "Can I finish inside you?"

Sam blinked. He wasn't physically prepped for it, but Kias wouldn't hurt him. "Yeah, okay," he said, and ran his hand across the back of Kias' neck, stroking his shoulders. "All right."

It was a shaky and rushed process, Kias pulling away, pouring more oil onto his cock and the general area involved. Sam spread his thighs, pulling his knees back to his chest.

He had expected it to be uncomfortable, and it was, but Kias thrust in slowly and Sam was relaxed and ready, if not otherwise prepared. Usually he would have expected the courtesy of a minute or two of slow going before things started getting rough, but they were too far gone for that.

Kias stopped for a second after his first couple of thrusts, and the look of intense concentration on his face showed Sam it wasn't easy for him to hold still. "Okay?" Kias asked, voice slightly hoarse.

"Yeah," Sam said, giving him a reassuring smile. "Go."

Sam hadn't done this in months, but his body remembered it. He knew it would feel good, soon, friction and pressure against the sensitive parts in him that had gone untouched. His erection had flagged somewhat from the discomfort of entry, but Sam stroked himself as Kias started to move again and it came back real fast.

It didn't last long. When Kias had asked if he could finish inside Sam, he'd meant finish. Kias let out a harsh gasp as he thrust in deep, his fingers gripping Sam’s hips with bruising force as his whole body tensed. Sam increased the speed of his hand on his cock but the shock of penetration had knocked his arousal back, and he'd only just gotten himself worked back up to where he'd been before. He wasn't going to be following Kias over the edge just yet.

Kias stared down at Sam, panting, satiated. When he slowly rocked his hips back, Sam assumed he was pulling out, but then Kias thrust forward again. Kias continued that pace, slow and at just the right angle, rubbing the palms of his hands up and down Sam's thighs. The pressure was good, inside and out. Sam's mouth dropped open and his eyes slid half-shut, hand moving faster over his erection.

As Sam brought himself over the edge, tight pleasure burning through his body, he felt Kias bury himself deep as Sam's body clenched around him. Afterwards, when Sam was finished adding his own fluids to the sticky, oily mess covering himself, Kias slowly pulled out.

Kias crawled onto the bed with Sam, which required a lot of close snuggling because it was barely even big enough for one. In the end, Kias was pressed tight against Sam's side, his head on Sam's shoulder, barely keeping from falling off the edge of the bed. They stuck together awkwardly where they touched, both covered in a light layer of sweat. Sam felt his pulse slowly calm, though he continued to pant. Kias' breathing was a little fast, too, and they came down together from their high.

"Was that okay?" Kias whispered after a while. He traced lines with his finger in the oil and goop on Sam's stomach.

Sam let out a satisfied sigh and shut his eyes, enjoying the calm. "That was fantastic."

He heard Kias snicker quietly beside him. "Now even I think we'll need a bath. Do you have one of those hidden in here as well?"

"I did ask for one," Sam admitted. "But apparently showers and toilets are luxury facilities that aren't actually required. The outside world has to fulfil those needs."

Kias sat up and stretched, narrowly avoiding falling off the bed. "Do you at least have a cloth to wipe off with?"

"Mm, yeah." Sam pointed a lazy finger in the direction of one of the overhead storage compartments. "Should be a bunch of towels in there. Get down three, but only use one to clean us off."

"Why three if we're only using one?" Kias asked as he pulled a stack of towels down, taking one and tossing two more on the floor.

"We'll use the others later." Sam let Kias wipe the dry towel over his body, cleaning up the worst of the mess but still leaving him feeling sticky and smelling of sex.

As soon as he was clean enough not to start dripping all over the shuttle the moment he was upright, Sam stood and headed over to the console, pressing a few buttons to bring up the navigation.

"What are you doing?" Kias asked, coming up to stand beside Sam and leaning heavily against his shoulder.

"Finding the closest natural clean water that doesn't have any human life signs close to it." Sam adjusted the parameters and smiled when the shuttle interface showed him what he'd been looking for. "Found it."

Sam didn't particularly want to get their naked, oily asses all over the shuttle's nice clean chairs, so they stood while Sam navigated the shuttle slowly and smoothly towards their destination. It was a little over ten minutes of pleasant countryside views before they reached the location Sam had detected, a small, clear, fast flowing river. He then found a clearing large enough to fit the shuttle and landed it.

Kias peeked out the door at the rocks sloping down to the river. "This is actually much nicer than a shower crammed into the shuttle."

Sam retrieved a bottle of liquid soap then headed over to Kias, slapping him on the ass to get him moving out of the shuttle. "It's nice because it's a warm day. Not so much when you desperately need to bathe and the only water available has a thin crusting of ice forming on it."

They scrambled down the gentle rocky slope to the river's edge and Sam swished his foot in the water. "I had to fill a container with water and take it back to the shuttle for a sponge bath. Not my favourite world."

Kias was already knee deep in the sluggishly flowing water, grinning back at Sam, so Sam left the towels and the soap on the rocks next to the river and followed him in.

The water was pleasantly warm and almost perfectly clear, the bottom still visible even at its maximum depth where it reached Sam's waist. Kias spotted small fish in the water and tried to catch them in his cupped hands, but they were much too fast for him. Sam wondered what Kias would even do with one if he caught it.

Stepping up behind Kias, Sam wrapped an arm around him and pulled him close, resting his chin on Kias' shoulder. The water and the nudity combined to create a delicious slide of skin on skin. "Hey."

Kias slipped his hands behind the both of them to run them over Sam's ass under the water. "I think your butt's still oily."

Sam chuckled as Kias slid his hands back and forth. "I'll clean off with the soap in a bit."

"I know," Kias said with a laugh. His fingers slipped teasingly along the crevice of Sam's ass. "It's just fun."

The enjoyment Sam was receiving from his groping was abruptly interrupted when Kias announced he'd seen an eel and splashed off into the water. He'd shown this boy spaceships, but somehow simple aquatic life interested Kias more. Sam smiled and shook his head at Kias and went to get the soap.

#

There were actual fish living in the river, and that fascinated Kias. He'd seen fish before, but they'd been dead fish caught by fishermen and brought to be sold in town. There had been a canal running through the city Kias had lived in, and he had always liked to pretend that there were fish living in there. There weren't, of course; the whole thing was so polluted that drinking the water would almost certainly kill you. That hadn't stopped Kias from making a toy fishing rod out of a stick and a piece of string and pretending, though.

Sam was standing near the shore, rubbing liquid soap into his skin. It was insane to Kias what they'd just done in the shuttle — what Sam had allowed him to do. Where Kias was from, rules of play were generally dictated by pretty firm boundaries, and by all of those rules Kias ought to have been in the submissive role. Though Kias had never considered himself a firm follower of such pointless social rules, he'd never truly defied them.

Of course, there were other reasons for that. He was a scrawny eighteen year old with no status, so of course all those paying to see him had trumped him on all of those power factors, and of course they'd been the dominant ones. Among the other boys he had been the oldest, and though he’d willingly been on the receiving end before he'd never taken a submissive role to any of them. He’d felt more comfortable dominating and they’d expected and wanted it from him, so there'd never really been any question.

But Sam... he'd accepted it so easily and graciously that it had Kias wondering how things were generally done in Sam's culture.

Sam waded deeper into the water and splashed himself down, washing all the soap suds off.

"Sam..." Kias said slowly, cautiously. "Are you okay with... with the things we did before? What I did?"

Sam sat down in the shallow water near the river's edge and looked up at Kias curiously. "Yes. Are you?"

"Yes, I liked it," Kias insisted. "But we can do things differently next time if you want." Kias ran his toes through the pebbles that made up the river bed. "I don't think I can have you on top of me, but you could be... you could be inside me, instead, if I was on top."

Sam's brow furrowed. "We can do that if you prefer. As long as it won't hurt you, anyway."

"But would you prefer it?" Kias asked. "What do you want?"

Sam walked over to Kias and wrapped damp arms around him in a reassuring embrace. "I want to feel good and I want you to feel good. I want to have some fun and I don't want anyone to get hurt or feel scared. What do you want?"

"Yeah," Kias mumbled into Sam's shoulder. "Those things."

"Good." Sam gave Kias a couple of firm pats on the back before pulling away. "Come and let me wash you off."