Q - Fountain of Youth

[provocateur_king]

True to his word, Bond found Tanner who was much the same despite being a bright eyed young lad. Bond gave the order and then watched as the crew managed to finally drop anchor.

He hoped Q was right and this would wear off. The entire crew couldn't hoist it again.

He took off his hat as he entered the chamber to find Q, smiling when he saw what the young man had done.

"We're steady," he said.

Comments

[bibbidi_bobbidi_boffin]

Q had set the table with drinks and some fruit, and had even made the bed back up, taking care to fluff the pillows.

"Alright?" he asked, trying to look and sound a bit more grown up than he looked in the moment.

[provocateur_king]

Bond peeled off his jacket as he looked around.

"It looks wonderful," he smiled.

His eyes darted from the table to the bed.

"Inviting."

[bibbidi_bobbidi_boffin]

Q looked pleased with the praise, taking a glass and handing it to James.

"It'll be like a vacation," he insisted, taking his own glass as well.

[provocateur_king]

Bond smiled softly before taking a sip. Maybe Q was right. A little holiday might not be bad.

A swallow, then he stepped closer to Q.

"Usually for a vacation, you leave home," he chuckled as he wound his free arm around the slender young man.

[bibbidi_bobbidi_boffin]

"We can pretend," Q offered. "You used to play with me sometimes, when I was a boy still. I prefer the games we play now I'm an adult, but... We used to pretend a bit."

[provocateur_king]

Bond's smile turned soft and nostalgia crept into his eyes.

"I used to chase you around the deck," he remembered. "The way you'd laugh..."

[bibbidi_bobbidi_boffin]

"You were good to me," Q said softly, slipping his arms around James and resting against him. "The night you made me quartermaster and asked that I stay... That was a dream. I'd wanted you to ask me to stay so long... And then you did."

[provocateur_king]

"As if it were ever a question," Bond replied softly, dropping his lips to Q's hair. "The moment I saw you on my deck, I knew I was doomed. I had never planned to fall in love, you know. I fought it. And lost."

[bibbidi_bobbidi_boffin]

"Good," Q said quietly. "Because you were all I ever wanted."

He nudged Bond towards the bed, wanting to just sit with him.

[provocateur_king]

He took one more drink and then put his glass down to follow.

At the edge of the bed, he took hold of Q's hips. He held him there, held him close.

"I don't tell you I love you nearly enough," he said. "I do. Always."

[bibbidi_bobbidi_boffin]

"Love you too," Q said quietly, resting his forehead against James'.

"I wish we could relax like this when things weren't so upside down," he confessed.

[provocateur_king]

"I'm not certain I'm capable...but it would be nice," he said softly, closing his eyes.

"To take some time. Uninterrupted..."

[bibbidi_bobbidi_boffin]

"Alone," Q whispered. "I like when you make me yours, for days on end."

It was the only time he felt like he could stop thinking and working. The only time he ever really let go.

His hand slipped under Bond's shirt, fingers splaying over skin... And he knew he shouldn't, not while they were stuck like this in the flesh of their youth, but... It was just a touch, and they were men. They were. Even if everything felt jumbled right now.

[provocateur_king]

"When we stop in port and I lock the door?" he asked, his own hands catching Q's arms, then following to hold his wrists, keeping his hands against Bond's skin.

The captain wet his lips.

"No game we ever played when you were young," he said.

Not that he believed. But there had been times when Q had first joined when Bond would take him ashore and not let him out of his sight. He'd kept Q at his side, day and night on land.

[bibbidi_bobbidi_boffin]

Q shivered a bit, shaking his head.

"Not a game I'd have understood when I was young," he admitted.

Now he understood it well. It wasn't a threat or a punishment, it was mercy. An invitation to stop being Q for just a little while.

"You always knew what was best for me," he admitted, palms still pressed against warm skin as he settled against Bond again. Content to just be near. This body was built to play chase and cards, not the games they played now.

[provocateur_king]

"I've only ever wanted to make you feel safe, Q. You understand that, right?" he asked softly.

[bibbidi_bobbidi_boffin]

"And you do," Q assured him. "I always feel safe with you, James. I always did."

[provocateur_king]

Bond pulled him close to embrace him and bent to press a kiss to his hair.

"I do adore you," he said softly.

[bibbidi_bobbidi_boffin]

Q didn't mean to get so emotional, but he couldn't seem to help it as he hid his face against Bond's chest. Tears pricked at his eyes, but they were happy tears. Truly.

"Sorry," he said quietly. "I don't know why I'm being so... I adore you too."

[provocateur_king]

Bond reached to lift Q's chin to get him to look at him. Once he met his eyes, he smiled.

"I love you, beyond what any reasonable man should. If you believe nothing else, Q, believe that."

[bibbidi_bobbidi_boffin]

Q nodded, holding James a little tighter before letting go. Though his hands never fully left James.

"It's strange though, being in this body again. Being near Hex... Even being near Harry woke all these feelings I'd forgotten. I had a crush when I was young. An embarrassing one at that."

[provocateur_king]

"Again, Q, I'm aware," Bond said.

He guided Q gently to the bed to sit and hold him close.

"I was aware then, and it was obvious this morning."

[bibbidi_bobbidi_boffin]

"Nothing ever happened though. Some fumbling and kissing... But it never went past that," Q promised. "But... There was one person."

[provocateur_king]

"One of the crew?" Bond asked, genuinely a bit shocked.

He'd watched so closely.

[bibbidi_bobbidi_boffin]

"No. Um... You know our new guests?" Q asked awkwardly. "Well, um, I actually met Jack some time ago. My seventeenth birthday... We'd made port, and I'd saved up for that room of my own..."