Sun and Laughter

by Merry Amelie

Title: Sun and Laughter
Author: Merry Amelie
Archive: MA only
Category: Alternate Reality, Qui/Obi, Romance, Series
Rating: NC-17
Summary: Springtime friskiness

I'm posting Arcadia and Q/O drabbles to TPM 100.

Series: Academic Arcadia -- # 140
A chronological list of the series with the URLs can be found under the header 'Academic Arcadia' at the Master Apprentice ML.

My MA story page is here.

Feedback: Is treasured at MerryAmelie@aol.com.
Disclaimer: Mr. Lucas owns everything Star Wars. I'm not making any money.

For
My beta team: Nerowill, Emila-Wan, and Carol
Mali Wane for posting
My former betas: Alex, Ula, and Padawan Sue

"I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud" information, courtesy of Wikipedia.

Note: One of my MA friends had the lovely idea of having Quinn and Ian marry again, this time with the Mastersons there. Please remind me, so I can give you proper credit for your inspiration.

For Stacey

Sunlight on his face.

It seemed like forever since Quinn had felt it last. Lying on the grass in their Alder Run backyard, with his clasped hands supporting his head, he basked in the Friday afternoon sun soaking into his skin. Spring always did this to him, especially after the interminable Upstate winters. If he and Ian hadn't had tenure...

Though he loved Luke, he sometimes dreamed of joining his maternal uncle's clan out in Casheke, California. He'd long been fascinated by the redwoods there, and the temperate climate was more to his taste.

But here and now was a good place to be.

Quinn savored the scent of daffodils and jonquils from their garden a few feet away. He'd had to promise Ian a trip to Milkshake Micah's to get him to help with weeding last weekend, but he'd come out ahead -- together, they'd finished the chore in half the time, and he'd gotten to see Ian lick an ice cream cone for the first time this season.

He looked up, the sky a mirror of his eyes, to see sunlight burnishing copper hair as Ian dropped down to lie beside him. His laddie's smile outshone the sun.

"Hey, Quinn." Ian's voice was lower than usual, thanks to the cheering they'd done at the LukeLoves meeting that afternoon, celebrating the recent victories for marriage equality in Iowa and Vermont.

Quinn grinned when he felt Ian's arm pressing against his own, little hairs tickling his skin. "Hey, handsome."

"You look so happy." Ian got on an elbow to kiss Quinn's smile.

"Only because I am." Quinn kissed Ian back, his lips smacking in satisfaction. "All this progress in such a short time, after years of waiting."

Ian kissed Quinn's nose for good measure. "Yeah. Can't believe how fast things are turning around. We're legally married in New York now, thanks to its reciprocity with Massachusetts, and there are four states which have equal marriage outright."

"Connecticut, Vermont, Iowa, and Massachusetts." Quinn's rich voice resonated over the lawn, as if he were reading an honor roll, which in fact he was.

Ian riffled through the grass with the tips of his fingers. "When I was a boy, I never dreamed of all this. Thought I'd be lucky if my folks never found out. Most I hoped for was to be left alone."

Quinn nodded. "Me, too. It'll be amazing for the next generation, knowing that marriage is an option when they're still kids."

"Wow!" Ian whistled. "Talk about freedom. I'm so happy for them, to be born into a world where they can fall in love with the gal or guy of their dreams."

"If Governor Paterson's marriage equality bill passes, one tenth of all states will have equal rights," said Quinn with satisfaction.

Ian got onto his knees as Quinn quirked his lips, recalling that move from his lad's latest floor exercise. Quinn sensed something was up, and knelt in front of him a bit more sedately. He grinned at Ian encouragingly.

Ian took Quinn's hands in his own sweaty ones. "If it happens, would you marry me here?" His voice was shaking. After all, this was the first time he proposed to Quinn.

"Oh, laddie, YES!" Quinn grabbed Ian and kissed him as passionately as if they were in their bedroom.

Ian kissed back hungrily, giving thanks for the mature trees in their backyard, shielding them from their neighbors' view.

Quinn cupped Ian's cheek tenderly. "We could finally invite my folks. And they'd come!" Quinn couldn't keep the delighted disbelief from his voice, nor the smile from his face.

The last time Ian had seen a smile like that, they'd been on their Valentine's cruise together, dancing to Moon River. There would be many more happy crinkles in Quinn's future, if Ian had anything to say about it.

Quinn had to clear his throat to speak. "This time it'll be even better, with both sides there." He hugged Ian tight. "My mom and dad will be in the front row!"

Ian pushed him back onto the grass, snuggling into his side. "Right next to mine. And Lelia will love it. She likes to sit on Ginny's lap."

"Our little flower girl," Quinn said fondly. "Y'know, she helped me plant those daffodils with the garden play set we gave her. Before too long, she'll be ready for me to share my favorite poem about daffodils."

"Hey, I'm ready now." Ian playfully groused and settled in to listen, his hand a warm delight on Quinn's stomach.

Quinn ruffled his hair. "Here we go, my impatient one.

"I wandered lonely as a cloud..."

Wordsworth's poetry had never sounded more beautiful to Ian. Quinn's lilt captivated him more than the poem, making the "host of golden daffodils" seem as fresh as those blooming in their garden.

"Love it when you spoil me like this," Ian murmured.

"That's what weekends are for, love," Quinn whispered, breath an intimate tickle on his hair after his private performance.

Ian raised his chin, eager for Quinn's kiss. This one was more urgent than their previous kisses.

"Let's go inside," Quinn rumbled. He rose and pulled Ian up with his right hand.

The puppies were asleep in their baskets as they passed through the kitchen, pausing to make sure their bowls were full. Now their only thought was to strip and wash. Ever considerate, Quinn headed down the hall, leaving Ian the facilities in their bedroom. Thankful for their two bathrooms, Ian rushed his ablutions to get back to Quinn as soon as possible.

Quinn had changed the sheets this morning, eking out a load of laundry before school. Their coolness was delicious against his sun-warmed skin, but Ian's heat was even better, when he snugged into Quinn's arms.

One of the perks of their king-sized bed was the space to play. Ian took full advantage of it, just as he did on the floor exercise mat. After all, both had springs.

He rolled Quinn to just where he wanted him, pinned to the bed under him, the better to coat his face and neck with kisses.

"Hey, hot stuff. Whatcha want?" Ian punctuated his question with a thrust of very agile hips.

"More o' this, laddie." Quinn's wolfish chuckle tickled Ian's lips.

Ian could almost taste it. "Oh, you'll get plenty. Don't be hasty."

"Oh, ho! Even Treebeard is hastier than I am. I may 'look like an Ent, but ain't,' as Tolkien said." Quinn wrapped his arms around Ian's waist, their chests rubbing together delightfully.

Ian captured Quinn's teasing lips, starting his own teasing with a lick and a suckle, but kept his hips still after that provocative thrust. "Good, 'cause I wanna make this last," he breathed. He brushed kisses over his herven's forehead, cheeks, nose, and chin.

"Can't get enough of you, lad," Quinn purred, tightening his embrace.

Ian could feel the rumble when he nuzzled Quinn's Adam's apple, and he lavished it with attention. After a few blissful moments, he finally came back to Quinn's mouth and stayed there. He loved the taste of Quinn and toothpaste; the tingle Ian felt while exploring his mouth was more than just peppermint.

And he wasn't the only one to feel it. Sliding his tongue over his husband's teeth, Quinn dipped his tongue into the groove of a right molar and wiggled it. His lad snorted a laugh, and Quinn had the unusual treat of feeling it from the inside of his mouth. When he felt a chuckle of his own bubbling up, he pulled his tongue back, leaving them both free to laugh out loud.

"Next you'll be tickling my palate," Ian snorfled.

Quinn groaned. "Ah, laddie! What should I do with you?"

Ian grinned merrily. "I can think of a dozen things off the top of my head."

"This one of them?" Quinn rolled them so that he was now sprawled above Ian, a ferocious grin on his face. He slid his arms and legs over Ian's in a sensuous glide.

"Nah, it's better." Ian thrust his hips again, this time from beneath Quinn.

Their cocks bumped deliciously, along with their sacs. They rubbed against each other with increasing abandon, eager to come after their extended foreplay.

Quinn somehow managed to slide his hands between Ian and the sheet, and grabbed his husband's buttocks. He rammed his hips into Ian's again and again as his tongue thrust into his lad's mouth, this time getting groans instead of laughter.

Ian's smaller hands had a more difficult goal -- slipping between their writhing bodies to grip their cocks. And sweaty skin made his task all the harder.

His gasp when he succeeded electrified Quinn almost as much as his laddie's fingers pressing them together. Grunts were the only sounds they had left. Quinn shuddered when Ian's callused thumb rasped his glans, coming onto Ian's cock and fingers, semen slicking both their bellies. It took him a second to realize that he'd taken Ian along with him.

They rested a while, just drifting on an endorphin high, until they could move again. Quinn grabbed some tissues and cleaned them up, then pulled the comforter around their shoulders. Ian snuggled into his side, just as he had in the backyard.

A slow smile graced Quinn's face. "Nothing like a little sunshine to work a bit o' magic."