The first time was really more of a nothing. They had argued their way into the storage rooms, Embry simply trailing after his Page when Kuo decided the fabric wasn’t right for the coat and wanted to look for a thicker one.

Usually, the Mages didn’t enter the storage, simply because Eva was there, and nobody wanted to mess with the Ouga. But she was nowhere to be found while the Page muttered to himself, going through the different cupboards, boxes and trunks. The rooms were filled with silence. Only the rustling of the fabric to be heard, the light tapping of Kuo’s feet and the chirping of birds outside.

Embry watched the Page for a while, deep in concentration and rubbing different fabrics with his thumbs.

“I don’t know if this will scratch too much on your skin. But it’s the best we have.” Kuo frowned down at the stack.

The colour was a bit too light for his taste, and the red cabbage dye almost matched Embry’s hair colour. The Page didn’t want to admit it, but he liked it when his Mage looked good in the clothes he made.

Kuo felt the heat of another body and soft hair tickling his cheek. He hadn’t realised the Mage had started to hover. He seemed to love doing that.

“That one?” Embry asked curiously, and without any sense of personal space. Or he didn’t care.

Kuo hummed grumpily.

“Okay, so let’s test it.”

He turned around to Embry, who was casually dragging his tunic over his head. There were some bruises, and a big, angry scratch still healing on the Mage’s chest. Nevertheless, the Page flushed, trying hard not to look at the exposed skin.

“Do you want to look some more, or should I turn around?” Embry teased, loving how easy it was to rile his Page up.

Kuo huffed and dragged a piece of the greyish fabric off the rack. “Don’t be so full of yourself.”

He draped the material over the taller man’s shoulders, winding it around his hip like he’d seen some women doing it in the south. He carefully arranged it and tested the folding and its movement. The thicker loden would be good for the longer night coat.

“Move your arms a bit,” he mumbled. They were close; he could smell the faint scent of soapwort and citrus on Embry’s hair. “Does it itch or feel too rough?” He rubbed the fabric over Embry’s chest and dragged it over Embry’s nipples.

The Mage's breath hitched, blush blooming on his cheeks and ears.

“Actually,” he swallowed, “it feels really good.”

Kuo looked up, realising that he’d basically molested his Mage in the middle of the day in the storage room.

Embry stood motionless, cheeks deeply flushed, hands at his sides twitching like he wanted to reach out but wouldn’t. Unconsciously, the Page’s hand kept moving while he watched every change of emotion flitting over the Mage’s face.

“Really,” Kuo whispered. “Good to know I picked the right one.”

“No fucking in the storage room,” a voice drawled from above them. Kuo looked up, meeting a white eye peeking down at him sleepily. “I will rip you a second one if you so much as think of dirtying the fabric,” the Ouga muttered, lazily turning around in her makeshift bed on top of the cabinet.

Kuo dragged the fabric off his Mage, embarrassment written all over his face. “Um… let’s use this.” He bundled up an armful of the grey material and rushed out, leaving a confused Mage behind.

Embry looked up, the Ouga barely visible in the dim light. “I really hate you right now.”

She laughed as he stomped out of the room, following his Page.