apokroteo | i just wanna rp.

Oh, only a few thousand years or so. Hardly worth mentioning.

[ His eyes glance over, his cheeks a touch red, and he scoffs. ]

We'd best make short work of that, then.

[ ... and in those thousands of years... Hythlodaeus has not learned to resist Hades's heated cheeks. So he leans in and brushes his lips over one and then the other cheekbone. Feather light but drinking in the heat. ]

Well then. Hold away. [ A little crane of the neck, and words against Hades's ear, not that it's needed, alone as they are, other than as a sensation. ] I have no intention to slip through your fingers.

[ That does little more than worsen the redness of his skin, his scowl deepening - from embarrassment, not frustration or ire. ]

You are a monster, as terrible as the ones created long ago.

[ But he reaches to tug him closer, to wrap his arms around Hythlodaeus all the same. ]

[ Hythlodaeus happily presses close against him, and wraps his arms around him so, so very tight. ]

Well then. I have to live up to that in the future, clearly. I can't have you disappointed.

[ With his nose, he traces the curve of Hades's cheek, then a line to right beneath, then behind, the earlobe. ]

Or is that, I should become more monstrous?

[ He settles into the embrace easily enough - not clinging, as much as he might want, given the distance of time between them.

But he scoffs. ]

No, I have prepared enough of that for this lifetime.

[ It's fine, Hythlodaeus slot himself so closely and comfortably that he might be clinging, himself. Which he is.

And while he hasn't been fully aware all the time that Hades has been waiting, Hythlodaeus has been there, severed from everything and just about everyone. So, yes, he's clinging, too. Even if it is, right now, mostly for the sake of reassuring Hades, it is a need of his own, too. ]

You have prepared? For me? [ A very theatrical, exaggerated gasp even while he doesn't move an ilm away. ] I'm flattered.

[ There is a certain amount of brooding that Hythlodaeus will dispel with utter ridiculousness. For both of them, and on the force of habits that have endured, well. A long time. ]

You - [ He shakes his head, absent and almost carefree, given who he is and what he has experienced.

It's hard not to reach, to keep and want and yearn, but he musters himself all the same. It's what little he has, what little he can do. ]

Don't take it too closely to heart.

Right here.

[ It's all right. Hythlodaeus can wait until it's again natural and right for Hades to reach for him, rather than something he needs to muster himself from doing. For now, Hythlodaeus will stay close, reminding, reminding that he won't be going away, won't be slipping out of reach again.

A soft chuckle. ]

As you wish. Though you know I am a little less particular about what I do take to heart, hmm?

[ Emet-Selch recognises the fact that he is struggling, that he has new bounds to leap over; he has to adjust to a new world, a new way of thinking, a new sharpness. It's the weight of emotion that had been stolen from him, ripped from him, forced back in.

He shakes his head, looking at Hythlodaeus with a gentle, tender fondness. ]

I am well aware. You suffered me long enough.

Oh, Hades.

[ He reaches up again, hand cupping the face of the man he loves so much. ]

No time with you has involved any suffering. This, I can promise you. I ever have, and do, and ever will welcome each moment.

[ He is not going anywhere. The struggle that Emet-Selch has faced alone is over. ]

[ Which makes Emet-Selch laugh, softly, just a little. ]

Perhaps your definition of suffering has been altered over the years.

[ But, at least, he can lean in, accept some tenderness - even offer something of an embrace, if Hythlodaeus can figure it out. ]

But it makes me full glad to hear it.

[ A raised eyebrow because ... what hasn't altered over the years? And are they ready for this pain quite yet? But mostly, his hand soothes Hades's cheek, and he melts into the shift, the drawing closer - and he holds Hades back, unhesitatingly, comfortably. No, he had no trouble recognizing the embrace for what it is. ]

I rather think you found me insufferable some of the time, or so it might have looked to many. But I knew... I did not belong anywhere but at your side. And I still do.

Only some of the time?

[ But it is meant as a joke, allowing himself, once again, to be wrapped an embrace, to let himself curl around familiarity. ]

It is a good thing we found one another again.

Definitely only some of the time. You found other people more insufferable occasionally, I got a break now and again.

[ He's absolutely keeping the lightness, though his smile softens. ]

It was never going to be otherwise. It just took a little longer than I expected. But now I am where I should be.

You are where you were always meant to be.

[ He lifts Hythlodaeus' hand to his mouth, pressing a kiss against his fingers. ]

And I shall not allow you to leave again.

[ Hythlodaeus's smile is small, but so, so bright, lighting up his face and aether both. His fingers twitch slightly at the kiss, and he inclines his head. ]

Exactly where I was ever meant to be.

[ Without letting go, he finds a way to settle even while adrift, opening his free arm to invite his friend to be held - or even to stretch out with his head in Hythlodaeus's lap. Anything goes. ]

Come, Hades. Rest against me a while.

[ He can feel the glow, see the brightness of his soul, the aether itself, and Hades feels as though he can breathe once again. ]

As soft as you have always been.

[ But that doesn't stop him from moving, to lean, to sink into the embrace. ]

[ Hythlodaeus laughs, lightly, and wraps himself around Hades. Soft, indeed. His hand comes up to play with the soft, dark strands for a while, merely... holding. ]

Over this time. Did your mind play tricks on you, thinking I was harsher?

[ Mischief can be complicated, but Hythlodaeus has rarely had any desire to be unkind. But it has been so long for Hades, and time can play very unpleasant tricks. ]

Possibly so.

[ Memories can become clouded, darkened with danger and grief and hurt. It would come as no shock to imagine that he would damn himself with memories of a friend long gone. ]

It would not shock, I am sure.

Hmm. [ Hythlodaeus watches him for a long moment. ] Shock, no. [ Worry, perhaps, but not shock. But he's unlikely to express worry when he can focus on making things better instead. ]

What else do you wonder if you remember right, then?

Many things. Perhaps it was not as idyllic as I once imagined.

[ He sounds sad; sour. ]

All this fighting for something that may not have been perfect to begin with.

Ah.

[ Hythlodaeus reaches up, cupping Hades's face with both palms. This...

He can't make it better, because while it never scarred Hythlodaeus the way it seemed to have hurt Hermes, he was not blind to the imperfection around them. The little cracks that kept Azem occupied, that necessitated the seat of the Emissary.

So he cannot reassure him that it was perfect.

But... ]

It was ours, Hades. Mine and yours and ours. It was also... more peaceful and happier than how things are now. And then it was taken away.

And some of the choice on whether to appraise the comparison was also taken from you.

[ He sighs, leaning into the touch and trying his best to muster a small, gentle smile.

Nothing will get fixed; nothing will get better. There's no undoing it now and all they have in front of them is the possibility of a better future.

It is impossible for them to go back. He knows that now, securely. But he can wish. ]

I suppose you are correct. I have hardly had much opportunity for correct assessments.

Oh, Hades.

[ Soft, and so, so sweet.

Nothing will get fixed, nothing can return to how things were, but butter things may get. Depending on the definition of better. Hythlodaeus is sorry that all he can offer in lieu of the beautiful world they lost is himself. Paltry, by comparison. But that is not going to stop him from being right there.

Because to him, Hades being close is enough. He grieves, of course, and Azem being here as well would have made this complete, but his heart is full as they are too. He only wishes that he could grant that peace to Hades.

But that, he knows, will take a while. And he is willing to give them both this time. ]

Your assessments - I have never found them lacking, in any way. Them, nor anything else about you.

[ There is no undoing, no remaking, no going back, and he has been forced to accept that with the most intense of reminders. The Warrior of Light had done a rather formidable job of ensuring he would not forget it.

He has time enough in the future to recover, to heal, to be whole once more, and he has the gift of Hythlodaeus at his side as well.

Laughing softly, he turns to look at his partner properly, feeling the softness overtake him. ]

You must stop complimenting me.

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sharpeyes - 2022-02-15 17:35 (UTC) - Expand