Lightning II: Beloved Stranger, by Valentin (NC-17)

[marycrawford.livejournal.com]

Fandom: HERCULES: THE LEGENDARY JOURNEYS
Pairing: Ares/Iolaus, Hercules/Iolaus
Author on LJ: tovalentin
Author website: Valentin's stories
Why this must be read:

This story is loosely linked to Lightning, but it stands alone well enough. Both stories are A/U's, playing with possibilities. Here, Iolaus swears himself to Ares as a boy, and Hercules and Iolaus never meet - not until General Iolaus is tired of fighting, and a demigod with a death wish decides to join his army...

"You’re not planning on giving me a bath, are you?" he asked as Iolaus poured a fragrant unguent onto his hands, working it into a lather.

"You can wait till my housekeeper gets back, if you’d rather," Iolaus responded, and without waiting for a reply, spread the foam on Hercules’ beard. "I don’t do this for just anyone, you know," he continued, producing a razor. "In fact, I’ve never done this for anyone at all. Ares doesn’t grow a beard unless he feels like it. You did say you heal fast, right?"

Hercules realised argument was futile and closed his eyes, relaxing as the razor swept firmly across his cheeks and chin. He wasn’t sure what he’d been expecting of the much-lauded General Iolaus, but it certainly wasn’t the charming, talkative fellow who was currently shaving him. Hercules had never been a particularly social animal-he still didn’t know what Deianeira, who was as day to his night, had seen in him-and in the months following her death and the deaths of his children he had become morose and uncommunicative, preferring to keep his own company whenever possible.

And yet. Here he was, flat on his back after having almost been killed, being shaved by a stranger whose very intimate knowledge of him should have left him sullen and tongue-tied with embarrassment, and he was feeling… cheerful. He rolled it around on his tongue, testing its novelty. That was the word, all right.

Sometimes Valentin's style grows a bit too purple for me, but her vivid, sensual writing makes this story a joy to read. I love the many little character moments - Iolaus' and Hercules' inauspicious first meeting, Ares' annoyance and amusement at a young, insouciant Iolaus - and the portrait of Iolaus as a war-weary general. Plus, the banter is snarky, the hurt/comfort is delicious and the sex is sizzling. Go read!

Lightning II: Beloved Stranger