Another story I commissioned from  JVector involving Maliketh/Gurranq from Elden Ring.

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“Finally, a moment of respite…” Skully mused, a chill wind blowing past him. Smiling, he allowed himself a moment to relax, after everything he had gone through of late – his arduous trek through the Farum Azula as well as everything that followed shortly after – a moments respite back in Limgrave seemed like just the right thing to do. The world wouldn’t vanish or fall to ruin because he decided to take it easy for a couple days, after all.

Leaning back against a tree, he cast his gaze over the vast ocean, smiling softly as the day’s final sunrays disappeared beyond the horizon. A crimson glow was left in their place, one that would soon slowly begin to fade, making way for a brilliant canvas of stars, filling the night’s sky.

He needed this, he sorely needed this.

As a small fire crackled nearby, his eyes would close from time to time. The Sites of Grace just did not provide Skully with the same comfort so making a bonfire for himself seemed like the right thing to do. He’d fade in and out of sleep, a faint but steady drowsiness making the time pass just a little faster.

Though it wouldn’t be until later – until the night had almost completely taken over – that he was drawn back to reality. It was just a feeling at first – a sensation of something in the air – but before long it grew into a faint shape that slowly lit up with wispy, ethereal smoke, and promptly manifested into the form of Malekith a few meters away from Skully.

Instinctively, the young man would reach for his shield, holding it up a bit as he readied himself – he wasn’t sure what to expect exactly, as when last they met, Malekith – as he came to know the man he had once met as Beast Clergyman Gurranq – had tried to kill him.

“No, tarnished, wait!” The large, beastly form of his guest, shrunk back a bit, reaching a hand out towards Skully, imploring him to relent for a moment. “There is… no need of that.” He added, much more calmly, drawing a raised eyebrow from Skully.

The young man lowered his shield but did not set it aside just yet. “Then… why are you here?”

“I… came to see thee, tarnished.” There was a strained quality to Malekith’s voice, each word drawn out through seemingly great effort, his form winding and restless, albeit kept in check by a surprising amount of self-restraint. “I have… misjudged thee.” The great beast’s body waxed and waned in stature, yet slowly it began to calm down, motions fading as Malekith lowered himself fully onto the ground in front of Skully.

“Wh-what are you doing?” Skully paused, slightly confused by the oddly submissive display, his shield cautiously set aside.

“I wanted to… thank thee for sparing me.” The beast replied, holding its head low to the ground, bowing. “For the service thou hast done me, and for your...” He trailed off for a moment, giving Skully just enough time to interject.

“Aww, come on.” The young man shook his head. Emboldened by Malekith’s meek presence, Skully stepped closer. “There’s no need for that!” A smile lit his face up as he lay a hand on Malekith’s exposed snout. “I couldn’t up and kill you, could I?”

The beastly creature recoiled slightly from the sudden touch, flinching a little as if from an attack, but quickly moved back, pressing into the hand that caressed him. Malekith sighed, releasing a low, pleased hum as he let his fluffy chin rest in Skully’s hand. “I… I suppose not.” He murmured, “But then…?”

“Hmm?” Skully inquired, tilting his head to one side.

“Thou hast no need of Destined Death?” Malekith asked, holding the hilt of his sword firm, even as his shrouded eyes remained closer, his mouth slightly open at the pleasing sensation of a stroking hand upon his chin.

“Not particularly, no.” Skully shook his head, feeling the moment for physical contact had passed and relenting. “I mean… I’m a little curious about it, but that’s it, really.” A shrug followed.

“But then, tarnished, why did- Hmmmrgh…” A growl was followed by another long pause. “Was the reason thou came up to the Farum Azula also-?”

“I was just exploring.” Skully interjected easily with another shrug. “I didn’t even expect you to be up there, if I’m honest. Th-though I’m glad I met you again, Malekith.”

“Glad? Even though I fought thee tooth and claw, tarnished?”

“Well, yeah.” Skully nodded. “We cleared that up, didn’t we? And, speaking of which, you do know that I’m not technically tarnished, right?”

“Thou art not?” Malekith seemed a little taken aback by this, as he recoiled once more, tilting his head in confusion. “But the guidance of Grace… I could not sense it upon thee. Were thee not spurned by it like the rest?”

Skully’s gentle laughter echoed a little through the night before he shook his head. “Hahah, no! I’m just… well, not from around here.”

The mounting confusion was evident in the looming beast’s motions. “But then…” He moved closer, sniffing at the air around Skully. “What art thou?”

“I’m just Skully~” The young man smiled once again, feeling bold enough to reach over and grasp Malekith’s head, gently, with both hands this time, running his fingers through the soft fur. “You can call me that, you know.”

“Skully…” Malekith repeated, slowly, thoughtfully, as if trying the name out before committing to using it. “Skully…” He uttered again, this time feeling comfortable enough to shove his head closer himself, pressing the tip of his snout under the young human’s chin. “Then allow me to thank thee properly, Skully. As I’ve said… thou hast done me a great service, and in my blind pursuit, I had assumed thou would venture to undo it. Many hath tried to steal the Rune of Death. Yet only one has succeeded. I vowed… to never let such an atrocity come to pass again.” Malekith bared his fangs ever-so-slightly as those words left his mouth, but he was quick to compose himself once more.

“I…” Skully hesitated a moment, moving a little closer to the former clergyman and taking a seat. “I suppose I see why you would get as angry as you did.” He asserted. “But, like I said, I don’t really need the Rune of Death. What is it anyway? And, more importantly, why do you care about it so much? Does it do something important?” The questions escaped the young man’s mouth one after another before he had the chance to stop them. And though Malekith seemed hesitant at first, he too slowly lowered himself onto the ground, standing on all fours as he stretched himself half-way around Skully, lying down beside Skully.

“Queen Marika, entrusted it to me long ago. She plucked Destined Death from the Elden Ring, removed it from the natural order, so that no living thing would need to suffer true mortality.”

“Is… that why everything that dies comes back to life?”

“Yes.” Malekith nodded, pressing himself just a little closer to the young man’s form. “Had thou removed it from my grasp, had thou unbound it, death would have once again taken hold over the Lands Between.”

“Right.” Skully nodded comically. “Unbinding the Rune of Death – bad idea.”

“Indeed.”

“I suppose that is why you protected it so fiercely.” The young man sighed, leaning back as he gave his arms a stretch. “Sorry for uhh… giving you that scare.”

“It is of no consequence. No apology is necessary, I shall not hold it against you, tarnished.”

“Skully.” The young man emphasized quickly, making the fabled Black Blade recoil once more, seemingly perturbed.

“Thy words ring true. My apologies, Skully.”

“It’s not a problem.” The young man smiled in response, realizing that he had in fact… kind of been leaning on Malekith this entire time. The thought turned the corners of his mouth just a little higher as he stroked gently along the exposed portion of the Black Blade's arm. “In fact, you can keep calling me tarnished… …If you really want to?”

Malekith found himself slightly amused by the slight irony of giving an apology, seconds after accepting one himself. Thrumming at the gentle touch of Skully’s hand, he allowed himself, for just a moment, to bask in it. It had been far too long since anyone had done anything of the sort to him, but he was getting carried away – Skully’s understanding and acceptance was appreciated, though ultimately misplaced. He sighed, before standing up and moving away. “I should be on my way now, Skully. But it was… good, to see thee once more.”

“You don’t have to go.” Skully called out, reaching a hand over to grasp Malekith’s arm but quickly letting go, too shy to openly admit he wanted him to stay. Malekith – despite the different guise – had become one of the few people in The Lands Between whose company Skully truly appreciated.

Pausing, Malekith turned around to face the young man. “Was there… Something thee needed from me?”

“W-well…” Skully stuttered. “Not exactly but… You could just… stay… you know?” His cheeks just a little red, he looked up at the looming canine man before him.

This puzzled the Black Blade, he cocked his head at the smaller creature and thought about it for a moment. Curiously, he gazed into Skully’s face, noticing the blush before sniffing a bit at the air, humming as realization descended upon him. “I suppose I see no reason to deny thy request.” He said with a soft, knowing chuckle.

“R-request? That’s not-“

“Come now, tarnished. There is no reason for thee to be ashamed.” Malekith moved in closer, pressing his snout against the young man’s exposed neck – a cold, wet nose grazing Skully’s neck with a sudden, yet gentle sensation.

“Malekith, what are you-“ With a yelp, Skully felt himself hoisted off the ground – once again interrupted, as the looming beast scooped him up in his arms and pressed the little man tight against his chest in a warm, unyielding embrace.

“I will not forget… all thou hast done for me.” The Black Blade whispered, warm, steamy breath tickling against Skully’s ear.

This was – Skully realized – going too fast for his liking, but at the same time he could not bring himself to push Malekith away. The faint earthy scent of his beastly form, the tight embrace of his arms, the warm chest, and a deep, rumbling tone of his voice, reverberating through the young man’s body… It was an all-encompassing soothing presence that quelled any semblance of protest that he was thinking of putting up. Instead, he gave in, wrapping his arms fully around Malekith’s neck and pulling them closer to one another.

“Dost thou… have a liking for me, tarnished?” The deep voice sounded as the wolfish snout pressed softly against Skully’s cheek.

“I… I think I do, Malekith.” The young man’s voice trembled just a little – not fearful, but nervous, shy.

The arms tightened around his back as Malekith held him just a tad tighter. “I like thee too, tarnished… my tarnished.”

A slight jolt ran through Skully’s body at those words. There was a small defiant part of him that wanted to protest to this nomenclature, but the warm embrace loosened his mind just enough to accept it. He allowed himself to relax just a little bit in Malekith’s arms, feeling the exhaustion and stress of the past few days ebbing away.

Yet suddenly a wet feeling made his entire body shudder. With a soft, deep hum Malekith gave him a lick on the cheek, shocking the Skully enough to look up at the beastly man, mouth slightly agape. “Did you just-?”

“Did thou not like it, my dear tarnished?” Malekith asked with a slightly devious smirk, curving the side of his mouth – he knew the answer already after all.

Skully held a hand up to the slightly damp spot on his cheek, touching it as if to make sure the lick was real. His blush intensified as he remained silent for a moment. “Could you… do that again?”

A deep chuckle vibrated through the Black Blade’s chest as he pulled the human closer, nuzzling Skully, as his face was covered in a seemingly ceaseless barrage of kisses, each one feeling sudden and peculiar against his skin. His cheeks, his nose, his forehead, his neck… no one part within reach was left unattended. Yet, despite the overwhelming sensation, it was not hard to tell just how delicate Malekith was trying to be. Even still, Skully couldn’t help but feel the instinctive need to struggle a bit, but just as he did, he felt Malekith’s mouth press against his in a long, drawn-out, passionate kiss.

The young man, again, had half the mind to push the affectionate canine away but very quickly he went limp in Malekith’s arms, slumping down as he felt himself being lowered as the Black Blade leaned forward. Skully’s hands traced up along the beast’s broad shoulders, taking a brief detour to run once more through the thick fur, and eventually finding purchase around the neck. Cradling his arms around it, Skully returned the embrace, pulling himself up as he reciprocated with a kiss of his own, holding it firm for few fleeting seconds before slowly parting.

“Skully…” Malekith rumbled softly, leaning down once again and pressing his face against the young man’s chest this time, even if it was considerably larger than Skully entire torso. “Mine…” He growled softly, releasing a steamy exhale over the human’s face, making him wince and recoil slightly with a chuckle. “My Skully.”

“Heheh, alright, alright!” The young man giggled, the sniffling nose tickling along his chest. “I can be yours, Malekith.” He chuckled, only to grunt in slight discomfort as the embrace tightened again. “Wh-what are you doing?”

“I am merely…” Malekith began as he lowered himself down, stretching himself over the ground, not far from the small bonfire Skully had made to keep him company through the night. “Guarding thee, my dear tarnished.” A hum reverberated through Malekith’s chest, sending a cascade of goosebumps along Skully’s back. “As I do with Destined Death, entrusted to me by Marika. I shall guard thee, for thou hast entrusted yourself to me as well.” He stretched himself out over the ground, laying on his side and clutching the small human to himself.

It wasn’t until that very moment that Skully realized just how warm Malekith was. Even despite the armor covering his entire body, the Black Blade’s form felt snug and cuddly. Wrapped around Skully as it was, it kept the young man cozy, even as the chill air of the night finally began settling in.

“Hey Malekith?” Skully spoke up, pressing the back of his head against his large friend’s neck. “I’m… really glad we didn’t have to kill each other.”

As if in response to those words, Malekith gripped the weapon at his side, scuttling his fingers across the grip – Destined Death itself given shape. “I am glad… I did not have to vanquish thee either.” His hand then shifted upwards, clawed fingertips tracing along the weapon with a slick hiss before gently caressing Skully’s face – a pair of large fingers tenderly tracing along his cheek. “Death or no death... I will not let thee come to harm for as long as I am around. Sleep now, my dear tarnished. I’ve no doubt thou hast a long journey yet ahead of thee…”

A firm weight settled on the human’s head as Malekith finally allowed himself to relax, head drooping down, laying itself over Skully’s keeping it gently yet firmly in place.

“Thank you, Malekith…” The young man whispered softly, his eyelids growing heavier as days upon days of physical exertion finally caught up to him. Yet now, held like this… he felt ready to rest at last, ready to let his guard down and bask in the warmth of someone who had come to adore him.