Like Starlight and Wine (A Baldur's Gate 3 Astarion x Tav Fanfic)

33. The Bard From The Grove

We make camp along the edge of the swamp lands that evening, not feeling completely secure within its boundaries. Even with the strange old woman gone, there is still an air of magic that sparks through the atmosphere... a sort of putrid, heavy energy that leaves the whole place feeling... wrong - as though we are being watched by pairs of invisible eyes. Something about the swamp is not as it seems... something that dances just on the edge of my awareness but something I still can't quite place my finger on. But now, with the swollen sun setting in the west, we will have to wait until daybreak to investigate further.

Wyll approaches me where I sit alone staring into the warm, flickering flames of the campfire. He's asking me something, but I'm hardly listening. His voice sounds like a distant murmur through the blaring thoughts that swim through my mind. He attempts to offer me something for dinner but I absently decline. I'm not hungry again. My head is thick, and buzzing, practically intoxicated by the magic in the air. At least that's what I tell myself. But there is something else tonight... something that goes beyond the magic of the swamp... something that goes beyond hunger and beyond my situation with Astarion.

A sickly feeling twists my stomach into aching knots of terror and dread. The Urge is calling on me tonight. It had been fairly quiet as of late, but tonight it is hungry. It yearns for blood. It's almost paralyzing. As my eyes scan the camp surrounding me, I no longer see my companions going about their night. Instead, I see nothing but throbbing meat-sacks full of warm blood and stringy sinew just below the tender flesh.

I shudder, shaking my head violently to dislodge the images out of my mind. The Dark Urge will not get its satisfaction tonight. Especially not on my companions. I refuse to allow it. I will suppress it as long as possible. I try to ignore the sense of urgency gnawing away at my insides. I'm dangerous. I should just leave before it's too late...

"Well you and and Wyll have certainly been rather chummy as of late." A haughty, familiar voice rips through my mind suddenly, jarring me out of the almost trance-like state that I hadn't realized I'd been in. My head snaps around and my gaze locks onto a pair of ruby-red eyes searching mine questioningly. When did Astarion get here?

"Huh?" It's the only sound I can manage as I work to find my voice.

"Come now. Don't tell me you haven't noticed. He's been doting all over you," Astarion says with unabashed disgust, as if the very idea of my companion showing me any sort of compassion leaves a bad taste in his mouth. "He's been fretting like a mother hen ever since breakfast time. What did you two get up to in the forest this morning?"

"I mean... we talked, I guess," I shrug. "I suppose he's just worried about me, though I'm not entirely sure why. But it's still more than I can say for a certain vampire in our party." My blood roils with warmth as the words leave my lips and my eyes dart away back to the fire, unable to find the courage to witness his reaction.

"Ha!" Astarion scoffs in amusement. "Well, Wyll can 'worry' all he wants, but he doesn't share the same bond we do. And as long as he's not a vampire, he never will."

I can feel Astarion's sharp gaze on me, and when I glance back at him, I see his eyes watching my neck hungrily. Warm blood squirms beneath the surface of my skin.

"Hey listen... Astarion," I chew my lip, trying to ignore the way he's looking at me. "About this morning... I just wanted to say... well what I mean is... I'm sorry. I was just so worried about what the others would think I didn't consider your feelings. I apologize."

Astarion's eyes flit black up to mine, growing wide as if he just saw me sprout a second head. Then, the initial shock on his face melts into confusion, as if he's never heard an apology before.