Lae'zel has picked up that these stories involve tales of skill in their pasts. 

She tells a story of how she proved herself the best sword fighter of her generation in Creche K'liir. It just that it involved killing someone, and that someone sounds like he was 12 at the time, and it sounds like she was too?

Instant determination to protect Lae'zel with his life. 

"Why are you looking at me like that?"

"...no reason."

Cayden has never heard of a death slaad! Gale, please tell them more about death slaads. 

Slaads! They are frog like creatures created from the primordial chaos of Limbo. They live for freedom-- and death slaads are the biggest and meanest and only thing that an ordinary slaad will follow orders from. 

Very interesting!

Now they should all get to sleep. Busy day tomorrow. 

It'll be a busy day of finding a healer and not dying of squid! Everyone goes to sleep. 

Astarion stays up. 

The exact place Astarion is staying up is a little farther away than Cayden's really comfortable with but eh. Maybe he's shy. Good for him to have a preference. 

Oh. Oh this is going to be too easy. 

Wow, this is exactly what Cayden needed after today. Hits the spot both metaphorically and literally.

[Explicit version here.]

Astarion prides himself on his skills, thank you very much. 

(Cayden might notice that he has raised scars on his back. Astarion isn't going to draw attention to them.)

Cayden is far too polite to comment on someone's scars, thank you. 

Correct choice!

Astarion has never bitten someone before. Is it possible to do it subtly? Probably not-- but he's never going to get a better opportunity than this. 

Whatever the tadpole has done has broken his connection to Cazador. What's the worst he can do, if he ever finds him again?

He has regretted it every time he has thought "what is the worst Cazador can do?"

If this leads to him being staked, at least he'll die knowing the taste of blood.

Chomp.

"Sorry, that's a little rougher than I like-- oooh--"

"What are you doing?"

Cayden is delicious. He can see why Cazador was so proprietary.

Also: he did not think this through.

He doesn't want to let go but if he doesn't, he is getting staked.

He's just going to swallow all the blood in his mouth, let go, and hope Cayden can't see his own neck. "Mmm?"

Cayden touches his neck. He's bleeding. 

"What kind of weird shit are you?"

He doesn't know what a vampire spawn is! Excellent! He is not getting staked tonight.

"Oh, shit, I didn't think that would break skin."

"Astarion, I'm not that much of an idiot. That's not what normal biting feels like." 

Cayden should be choking Astarion or going for his sword, but instead what Cayden seems to be doing is holding Astarion close to his chest and petting his hair.

This is still not the reaction he was expecting. He can't complain though. ...Unless Cayden is setting him up to be blackmailed, which he very well could be. But he can live with a little black mail.

"What answer do you want?"

"...you're just a scared kid, aren't you?"

"I am significantly older than you, thank you very much."

Cayden is very warm.

"...do you need it?"

Ugh, he's going to have to be honest. "Define 'need.' I need blood not to starve. I've lasted this long on rats and flies, but--" It's awkward gesturing while balanced on someone's chest.