There were days when Acatl thought, bitter as gall and cold as the grave, that he really shouldn’t still be doing this. Teomitl was a married man, his former student; even if he’d been single, their positions meant a relationship could never be public. He was going to be the Emperor. There should have been no space in his life or in his heart for the High Priest of Mictlantecuhtli. The graceful thing would have been to step aside.
But it was the pettiest things that defined them; for once in his life, Acatl was going to be selfish. His sister had given her blessing, Teomitl was decidedly past needing a teacher, and they were both capable of being discreet. And...
And when he looked at Teomitl, he saw a bright and golden future. When Teomitl smiled, he smiled back. When Teomitl took his hand, met his eyes, kissed his mouth, he felt almost dizzy with the sheer unleashed joy of it.
It might still be a bad idea, but he’d made his decision.
Obsidian & Blood, Acatl/Teomitl
There were days when Acatl thought, bitter as gall and cold as the grave, that he really shouldn’t still be doing this. Teomitl was a married man, his former student; even if he’d been single, their positions meant a relationship could never be public. He was going to be the Emperor. There should have been no space in his life or in his heart for the High Priest of Mictlantecuhtli. The graceful thing would have been to step aside.
But it was the pettiest things that defined them; for once in his life, Acatl was going to be selfish. His sister had given her blessing, Teomitl was decidedly past needing a teacher, and they were both capable of being discreet. And...
And when he looked at Teomitl, he saw a bright and golden future. When Teomitl smiled, he smiled back. When Teomitl took his hand, met his eyes, kissed his mouth, he felt almost dizzy with the sheer unleashed joy of it.
It might still be a bad idea, but he’d made his decision.