Rent was tough in the city, especially when you were a revolutionary and low on cash—or, you know, just cheap. Pein was a god he deserved more, but all religions had rough starts, even when those religions had sexy angels. He was starting to think what he needed was disciples, possibly a more distinguished symbol. Currently he was testing out the more piercings than a porcupine thing but that didn't seem to be drawing in the right attention. His Angel Kohan was very supportive even taking up piercings of her own and going to all his sermons, but so far no others had joined them in prayer to him.
That is how he ended up putting up fliers in the hall of his apartment building. The proprietor didn't respect Pein's divinity and demanded timely rent payments and never gave slack. Pein's youtube channel helped get them funds—and of course Kohan's paper craft series was popular (along with her more exotic side jobs)—but it was often still hard to make ends meet. Just last week they'd had to cut their budget on candles when the landlord had fined them for running a business on his property. Where all the money the guy got from his tenants went was beyond Pein as the property was a shit hole. He assumed the jerk just hoarded it like Scrooge.
Pein stapled the last of the fliers Kohan had made for him on the final floor built board over a fools booklet on the wonders of the false god Jashin
—
There was a loud, furious banging on Pein's door that completely ruined his sermon recording and he'd really been getting into it. Kohan nodded to him signaling that she'd stopped the recording. The knocking got angrier and he considered pretending he wasn't home wondering if the door could take it.
"PEIN!" It was the landlord.
Kohan stood up carefully dusting off her skirt and making her slow way to the door. Pein watched her go glad he hadn't had enough money to order those robes for his church what with the view. She truly was an angel she managed to open the door with the most elegant of smiles, "Hello Mr. Kakuzu."
Mr. Kakuzu was a rough guy long hair down his back, demonic eyes the green of his favorite comity. He wore cheap suits like a sleazy car dealer and did business like one. He held up a flyer, one of the ones Pein had put out that morning, "What is this?"
"The billboards are for notices," Kohan smiled politely.
"The billboards are for paid advertisements not your god complex shit."
Pein decided now wasn't the right time to bring up his idea about no-profit organization housing cuts. It never seemed to be the time for that. People these days just didn't respect divinity as they once had.
"Fifty bucks."
"What?"
"Fifty bucks a day for advertisement on our buildings bulletin boards, a hundred in the alleyway."
"That's not fair."
"Life is not fair Mr. Pein, the money must be in my office tomorrow for today and however many days your keeping your advertisement up along with a hundred dollar retainer for hosting a business gathering on the premise or I'm evicting you and holding onto your deposit and the entire months rent no refunds." He slammed the door. If Pein had slammed the door like that he would've been fined for damaged, but Kakuzu always slammed doors the man had anger issues. Pein had attempted to convert him without success and had been fined for what Kakuzu had deemed a unsolicited advertisement and waste of time.
Pein would move but he couldn't disengage from his religious standoff with the loud albino jerk from across the hall. As the one true god it was his duty to destroy all blasphemers. Also there was a moving fine of a million dollars before the contracts expiration date in fifty years. Kakuzu hd slipped that into a thousand page contract that no one had read and brought it up casually when Pein had attempted to move the first time.
Kohan patted him softly on the shoulder, "Baby I've got to get some sleep before work will you be able to finish the upload." She asked because last time she'd left him alone with the camera they'd ended up needing a new camera. He kissed her running his tongue over the piercing of hers and feeling brief elation as he flew with his angel. He told her he had it. Once she was gone he called up that kid from the second floor, Tobi, to help him. The camera in the guys hands got a bit shaky but Pein could pay him in lollipops and the kid would walk around telling people Pein was a god with a little subtle prompting.
—
Kohan A.K.A Angel worked nights at a Gentleman's club called The Siren three blocks from the tenant building she lived in with Pein. Some of the girls lived farther off simply to avoid running into clients. Personally, Kohan liked the looks on men's face when they saw her out in public when they were with their wives, their girlfriends, maybe their kids who didn't may not know they hadn't been bowling and talking about the stock market. Then again they might.
Tonight was a busy one, her body glistened as she went through the motions moving to the deep tone of take me to church. Some moron, sadist, or cheap bastard threw a fricking handful of quarters at her and she somehow managed to keep a sexy sultry look on her face. Then again, working with Pein gave her a lot of chances to practice looks like that. Sometimes he made her wish she'd stayed with Nagito.
Her hand slid up the bar balancing with the other as she spun then dipped back arching a heeled foot drifting over the ground stirring the money on it. A few of the more excited 'gentlemen' were spewing lewd her elbow hooked the bar head titling sensationally eyes aloof. She could fly above it all if she didn't look at the floor, at the patrons. Her loose fluttering hand slid slow down her leg hooking the heel and raising it the music swelling.
The that foot cane to the ground as the song ended, back and it's inked wings on full display in the flashing lights, her trademark.
—
It relaxed Kakuzu to balance his checkbooks, that was the only reason he didn't take off the Albino's head when amid doing this the guy just barged in. Hidan was the most annoying tenant he'd ever had in all his career, unfortunately he was also the most profitable because he was a moron. Kakuzu had no idea how the guy made money between his religious mania and Saturdays standing on a soap box a few streets down, but he had a lot of it. Granted the dumbass was so bad with money it hurt the empty void where Kakuzu's heart had been before he'd replaced it with a heavy duty safe and filled it with the fiscal profits from his many business ventures.
"Time is money Hidan, don't waste mine."
He was holding up one of Pein's fliers, how Kakuzu had managed to get some many religious psychos in one place was a mystery to him but he was starting to wonder if he could draw in a university study to profit off of the sheer concentration of them.
"FUCK YOUR MONEY YOU HEATHEN!" Hidan screeched slamming down the flier, "The fuck is this shit it was over my pamphlets." Ah yes the pamphlets, Kakuzu drew out the swear jar from the drawer of his desk and put it down. Hidan patted his chest which was inexplicably bare, then the pockets of his well fitted jeans. He dumped three quarters in and held more at the ready. As he went on his rant Kakuzu shrewdly took in the details of the albino's waxed chest and lean muscled body thinking of all the women that would buy pictures of it and all the profit he could make. Meanwhile, a steady clink was interspersed between most of Hidan's words. Swear jars filled up quick around him and the dumbass never learned.
"Scrooge you fucking listening?" Another coin went to the jar.
Kakuzu was surprised the guy knew who scrooge was, maybe he'd heard someone else saying it.
"Unfortunately I can not take down a paid bulletin, but I can request that he move any posters blocking your advertisements."
"They're truth not advertisements you sleazy—fuck" he realized he didn't have any more quarters.
"I'll keep a tally for next time."
"May Jashin castrate you greedy heathen."
"Points for creativity but that was still swearing."
"Fine him."
These words were surprisingly enticing, Hidan had so much profit potential. Kakuzu rose and eyebrow at him. He would do just that, "I'll take it into consideration. Even the man's backside was toned Kakuzu noted as Hidan stormed out and slammed the door. Yes he could be annoying but he also wreaked of profit and for some reason roses.
