"…holy fuck," Alisaie breathed under her nose, pointedly avoiding looking anywhere near Themis, who sat next to her.

After the silver-haired teenager escorted them to the lair of the shapeshifters and announced their arrival, she and Jess – and their boxes – were quickly 'claimed' by Damon and his brother, who nearly at the same time emerged from the surrounding gate forest in the company of a… well, very interesting-looking shapeshifter. While the literally ink-skinned male was introduced briskly as Fenris, the frost wolf (she was only vaguely aware that those were supposed to belong in Norse mythology), recognizing the logo of the bakery in their hands, both redheaded twins alongside Themis led them throughout a long, downturned corridor and into a big 'room' that looked like it was something of a conference one. With a big, long table square in the middle of it and with surrounding it chairs, while the walls looked plated with gold and jewels, the more modern additions in it seemed somewhat… off. Noticing her frown as they entered, the younger twin, Raha, chuckled and, pointing with a wide gesture toward the unfitting electronic devices (huge, flat monitor on the wall, laptop, speaker system, and such), explained that those were Damon's 'tools' as they planned upgrades to the lair… and their designed scheme.

Then, while the twins, in turns, proceeded to describe what happened since they last seen each other, awful as the whole thing was, she was somewhat distracted by a few things.

One… Themis, obviously – and her… curiosity if the dream she had last night was… Well, real or not. Considering their current company, she didn't dare as much as look at him because it made her feel a strange mix of embarrassment and excitement, if she was being honest.

Other was definitely the frost wolf, who apparently decided to accompany them and… well, seemed suspiciously bent on paying very close attention to the younger of the twins, who seemed completely unaware of it as much as she could tell. While Damon seemed amused by it, whenever not speaking, watching the male, Raha, who took over, looked completely oblivious to the fact that bright, green eyes didn't leave him even for a second… with such a determination that literally everyone else had to take notice. And since Themis's explanation the other night, she was somewhat… intimately interested in how the whole 'Soul-Bond' thing exactly worked… Alisaie would admit that she had on the end of her tongue a question about if it was what was making the younger twin so… well, oblivious to the ridiculous level.

…though, gorgeous as Fenris was, she would be inclined to think that he hardly had anything on Senri, so perhaps that was that.

Before they entered the room, however, on the way, Damon asked one of the shapeshifters they passed to inform Ares and his brothers about their – her and Jess's arrival – and specifically instructed the big, auburn cat to ask someone named Rahm to join them as soon as possible. Then, though she thought that their 'offerings' made both twins quite excited, the older redhead politely asked them to wait to open those boxes until that person arrived.

"Sure, I can't wait," he shrugged and smiled sheepishly at their surprised looks with that. "But since it looks like you literally grabbed every single type of dessert from our aunt's bakery, it would be a fucking waste not to ask Rahm to take a look, you know. He's very… ah, 'cooking-inclined,' and actually, I think he very much needs a distraction," then, as they agreed and settled around the table with closed boxes in the middle of it, he and his brother launched into the whole story.

A while after they did, however, a tall, very cute blonde with mismatched white-blue eyes nearly snuck into the 'room,' and after Damon's brief introduction as that Rahm they were asked to wait for, the older redhead stood up, grabbed both boxes and placed them in front of the surprised male.

"Could you take a look, Rahm?" he asked with a slightly softer than normal tone though the expression of his crimson eyes looked carefully neutral. "The girls brought it as a gift for the lair, but since they weren't sure what was suitable, they took one piece of every dessert available in a store that Raha and I like… If you could see about learning to recreate it…?" he hummed, and though Rahm's expression was quite grim when he walked in, that seemed to really cheer him up instantly – which she thought probably was Damon's goal if all she heard about him from Jess was accurate.

Her stay in Gatesville was definitely a good lesson in not judging the book by its cover so far, among other things. Listening to quite a number of rumors in the town would suggest that the older twin was cold and uncaring about anyone other than his brother, but after the story Jess told her on the way here, Alisaie was inclined to think that it seemed to be the exact opposite. Well, she didn't doubt he cared about his twin – her having one, she knew that that bond was quite… unique – but if one didn't really focus that much on his tone and expression but more on his actions instead, Damon actually seemed extremely caring and considerate. While Raha looked to be more… open and empathetic in expressing himself, which she did honestly appreciate, she had to admit that she was increasingly aware that his twin… well, she sort of understood better.

Or – perhaps – they were a tad more similar in that, Damon and her. She also sometimes found it hard and embarrassing to openly show caring about someone… or maybe she was just biased because she was thankful that he was a friend for Jess when she apparently very much needed one.

…and she was really not kidding about the temptation of smacking Gina over her head the next time she saw her… which was likely tomorrow. Which – in her book – wasn't soon enough.

"Ah… I would love that," the blonde Rahm grinned at the redhead – if somewhat tiredly – while pulling one of the boxes open and looking inside with a very real interest in his mismatched eyes, and if she was seeing right… the slight swaying of his tail. Dressed all in black, if his t-shirt and jeans looked completely new, he had this… aura around him that suggested he was quite exhausted. Though he looked about their age, a teenager, the lines around his eyes and mouth suggested he was definitely much older… and was through something awful recently. "Maybe there's something I can use to bribe Noru…" he muttered under his nose and sighed, narrowing his eyes toward the box's contents.

"How are you holding up, Rahm?" Raha asked softly, with a sympathetic expression folding his forearms over the table in front of him and delicately leaning toward the blonde.

"I'm… good, I suppose," the male replied, without looking at him as he gingerly pulled out one piece of the cake from many and sniffed it carefully. While they all sat, he kept standing at the empty, shorter side of the table, opposite the monitor mounted on the wall and with the entrance of the room – or the nook, as they apparently called it – behind his back. "Better than Ares, for sure."

"…huh?" Damon hummed calmly, but his whole face… completely closed off. There was no expression in his eyes, while his twin sitting on his left moved just slightly, and she could bet that he wrapped his hand around Damon's thigh below the table, subtly offering support.

"Ah…" the blonde tossed a careful look toward both redheads, then set the piece back down in the box as his mismatched eyes grew nearly apologetic. "There's…" he cut off, blinking and looking toward the rest of them hesitantly as he rested his hands rolled in fists on the edge of the table.

"It's okay, tell us," Damon asked quietly, and Rahm sighed again, focusing his eyes on the redhead's face.

"Cael woke up not long ago… and he's confused. He thinks Ares is Nyx… and it was rough," he replied softly, then shook his head slightly. "I think… it brought it all back for Ares, you know…? Cael's been… taken right before Hades was born, and if I'm getting what I heard right… that sick fucker used it to lure him out of the lair in the pretense of finding a gift… and then sold him. Or something. I just…" he trailed off and ran his hand through his hair with obvious frustration. "…wish he wasn't dead so I could kill him again."

"You're not the only one in that," Damon said in a completely cold and detached tone, looking toward the exit, then sighed and leaned back in his seat.

"Shtola stayed when you called me," Rahm added, and his expression grew softer with an adoring look in his eyes. "She's been… you know, soothing everyone since you two left, and on my way here, I passed Nemesis, heading the same way. Everyone's doing their best… but I can't help but wish I could do more. Or… something, at least. So… thanks, I mean," he trailed off again, and his face colored prettily as he cleared his throat awkwardly while looking down at the box in front of him again. "…oh," he frowned, picked another piece of a different cake, and set it aside with a distasted grimace.

"Hey, that's my favorite," Raha grumbled petulantly, leaning in to reach toward it… and two things happened at once: Damon caught his wrist in an unnaturally swift move, and the blonde looked at him as if the younger redhead suddenly grew another head.

"It reeks of poppy," he said, and the twins looked at him without understanding on their faces, but Damon's suddenly grew far too pale.

"Well, yeah, it's made of poppy seeds," Raha deadpanned in answer, with a confused frown tugging his hand free from his twin's grip but pulling it back instead of reaching toward the piece of black-brown cake. Rahm blinked, looked at the cake in question, then at the younger redhead, and very pointedly grabbed the piece and pulled it as far as possible out of anyone's reach.

"Raha… it's poison to us," he said with a frown, then shook his head slightly. "I mean, I don't know for you… exactly, but for Miqo'te, the poppy seeds are…" he frowned deeper, clearly looking for words.

"…deadly," Themis said quietly, and all eyes – hers included – swiveled toward him. Sitting on her right side, with Jess on her left, he grimaced slightly while looking toward Raha. "For us, as well, Brother. Opioids, in general, are extremely dangerous, but poppy… is worse. Do humans really eat it?" he frowned, looking at her and her friend with confusion.

Alisaie shrugged somewhat helplessly – since she never before had seen a cake made of it in the first place, while Damon, Raha, and Jess said nearly at the same time:

"Yeah."

"Well… I don't recommend it," Themis replied to them somewhat wryly, while Fenris, who sat opposite to him with his chair tilted nearly all the way back and with his arms crossed over his chest, hummed with consideration.

"So a tad like mistletoe for us," he said, balancing his weight with his knee resting against the table's edge.

"Oh…" Raha instantly turned toward him, and his whole face lit up with interest. "…because of the whole thing with your fa… I mean, with Loki?"

The frost wolf looked dazed for a moment… and she stopped herself from rolling her eyes at Raha's too-obvious… obliviousness, but the ink-skinned male seemed to collect himself swiftly and nodded, smirking.

"Yeah… something like that," he replied. "Freya took offense to his… prank and made mistletoe poisonous for us."

Raha grinned, clearly pleased with his correct guess… while she tried not to consider the whole 'gods are real' conundrum too deeply. She already spent far too much time on that since she heard about Bastet… and she didn't really want to make herself look silly by freaking out over something that the others seemed to take in stride.

"It explains why you got so sick three years ago," Damon said suddenly, and they all looked toward him. He was, in turn, staring at his brother with a completely empty expression. "When our aunt moved here… to Gatesville, I mean… and you kept stuffing your stupid face with this shit," he waved his hand toward the piece of cake in question while Raha hissed indignantly, crossing his arms over his chest with a sort of funny pout.

"You did, too," he hissed toward his twin with outrage, even as his face reddened.

"I think we established that I was far behind you in the whole 'we're part Miqo'te' thing, yes?" his brother replied hauntingly, and they turned in their seats toward each other as if getting ready to fight. "Enough that it was apparently harmless for me… while you almost kicked the bucket, asshole."

"And how was I supposed to know…" Raha hissed, leaning toward him… and flinched when Jess slapped her hands against the table loudly. They both turned toward her with nearly identical, surprised expressions, blinking rapidly.

"You should both stop being morons," the brunette stated with power, glaring daggers at the twins, and with her dark makeup it gave her nearly a scary look… notion that Damon and Raha seemed to share as they snapped their mouths close and turned back to the table, looking between each other sheepishly. "That's better… Miss Nowak told me once that it's something of a traditional cake in Poland, and Raha couldn't know it's bad for him," she added, looking at the older twin who hesitated, then nodded with a somewhat reluctant expression and Jess's eyes turned toward the other brother. "And you know better than anyone how much that whole… situation upset your brother, yes?" Raha sighed, then nodded and turned toward his twin again.

"She's right… I'm sorry, Damon."

"Nah… shouldn't call your face stupid… We share it, after all," the older redhead snarked, and they smiled at each other.

"You're prettier," Raha grinned, then turned his eyes back to Jess. "Thanks… and sorry," he added, looking over the others.

"Hey… I have a twin, too," Alisaie shrugged and leaned back in her seat, if internally quite impressed with how her friend handled it. "Can't live without them… but sometimes can't live with them, either, right?" he smirked when they looked at each other and then snorted, nodding.

"Anything else we should be wary of… food-wise?" Damon asked toward Rahm, who nodded before returning toward his task of apparently carefully sniffing each piece.

"Wolfsbane," he replied somewhat absentmindedly. "Not as deadly, but it can cause quite severe diarrhea."

"Noted," the older twin nodded, then sighed and looked at his brother. "Now… where were we?"

Before Raha could answer, the plate guarding the entrance was pushed open, and a massive, ink-black feline beast strolled in, looked about the present with pale, ice-like eyes, and promptly turned into Senri.

"Here you are," he sighed, looking somewhat tired as he walked around the table and smiled at her and Jess. The moment he appeared, Raha seemed to simply… light up while the ink-skinned male beside him narrowed his bright eyes toward the hybrid.

"You're identical… huh?" Fenris hummed, and that seemed to only them make Senri notice him – and the pale eyes took stock of him with obvious interest.

...then his eyes alone grew even more reminiscent of ice somehow.

"Fenris, right?" he asked and grinned his slightly goofy, adorable grin, stretching out his arm toward the male when he stopped behind Raha's chair. "Ares told me a lot about you!" there was something really… off in the expression of his eyes when the frost wolf straightened his seat before accepting the handshake.

"Here…" Raha, still too fucking oblivious, pushed his chair back and stood up, blushing beautifully when Senri took it, sat down, and pulled him in his lap. Leaning into his lover's chest quite happily, he very much missed the very brief glare the ice-blue eyes tossed toward the ink-skinned male as the hybrid wrapped his arms around his boyfriend's waist… extremely possessively.

Someone really should make Raha a tad more… aware, she thought to herself while watching it and striving to keep a neutral expression when Jess below the table nudged her knee with hers, and they exchanged knowing looks when the frost wolf grinned with an obvious challenge while seated now with his back toward him redhead couldn't see it. She didn't have a Miqo'te nose, obviously, but she could almost swear she could taste the testosterone thickening the air around the table when Senri silently bared his fangs at Fenris above Raha's head, then instantly smoothed his expression with a smile when his lover looked up.

…so quickly, it was almost unnerving to watch, honestly. Clearly, there was something… more under his usual, easy-going attitude…

"Are you okay?" Raha asked, raising his hand against Senri's cheek.

"Now, yes, kitten," his boyfriend replied and leaned it to kiss the redhead's nose before he wrinkled his nose and his pale eyes shot toward the black-brown piece of cake at the edge of the table next to Rahm. "…ugh, gross."

…and he didn't see that that made Raha sigh with resignation, pouting in the same direction, while Damon snickered, then pointedly enlightened the hybrid about their earlier conversation over it.

"Ah…" Senri sighed, and his arms tightened around his lover. "I'm sorry you can't have something you like, kitten. But Rahm's right… while earlier probably you had to eat a lot of poppy seeds to get so… Ill, now it probably would be much, much worse, right?" he frowned, looking for confirmation at Damon.

"Likely, yes," the older teen nodded, then hesitated, and his expression grew somber. "Sen… How's Ares? Rahm told us about… the whole thing with Cael."

"He's…" Senri hesitated, then exhaled loudly and leaned back while pulling Raha closer to him. "…upset, predictably. He's going to need you, Damon… later. For now, Cael gets… anxious with anyone else. Hades shooed me off, saying that probably for now, it's better to let him believe that Ares's our father, you know? With everything… Well, I can only imagine how much of a blow it would be to tell him the truth. Before he woke up, Ares's had to dismantle the whole fucking web of compulsions Cael apparently resisted to some degree with the sheer will…" he trailed off and shook his head slightly. "It would be bad to cause him more… stress than absolutely necessary at the moment, let's say. We want to give him some time to… settle and believe he's free before… you know."

"I see…" Damon exhaled slowly, then looked toward Rahm. "And Noru?"

"Same, pretty much," the blonde replied with a frown, setting apart a few other pieces of different desserts – all with tiny, black seeds anywhere on them. "Ares said to give her time to… readjust and all. And I get that… she was too little to remember me… or our parents," his expression darkened considerably. "But at least… that blonde female with them they called Four…"

"…Rhasa," Damon corrected softly, and Rahm nodded briskly, not looking up as he pushed the first box away and opened the other one.

"Yeah, Rhasa… Well, she said that Noru was mostly safe. Those monsters were apparently too busy to pay attention to those younger Seekers, so they assigned Rhasa to watch over them while the kits were responsible for the caretaking of their… merchandise," he hissed under his breath, and Alisaie's throat grew painfully tight. "In the end, a good thing, too, I guess. From what I heard, those assigned to the different corridors said that when they arrived, they found the fuckers massacred by the said merchandise," he grinned if it was far from cheerful or happy, more like baring his teeth than anything else.

"Right…" Raha blinked, then shifted in his lover's lap to look at Fenris behind him. "That reminds me… We – Senri and me, I mean – found your pups, Fenr…is. As a freaking Cerber…" he trailed off when the ink-skinned Wolf grinned and flicked him on the nose… completely ignoring another silent snarl above the redhead's head.

"That's one of the neat… differences between my pups and the Miqo'te," he said toward Raha innocently, going back to balancing on his chair. "They can sort of… unite, let's say, for a more mass. I'm not that surprised to hear they learned it on their own, however, considering that they were cut off from a Pack," his expression hardened considerably as he looked toward the opposite wall above their heads… and for a moment, Alisaie was almost convinced that his white tattoos for less than a second seemed to writhe on his skin. She blinked, and it stopped… so she wasn't sure if she wasn't seeing things.

He wholly looked just… unreal, honestly. She somewhat vaguely remembered reading once that the darkest possible black was called 'ventablack,' so dark because it literally swallowed the light… and that's how Fenris' skin looked like, pretty much. Other than those starkly white against it tattoos. For a moment, her fingers almost itched to reach for her phone and look up whatever she could find online about the frost wolves… but she made a mental note to do it later, now only slightly shifting in her seat uncomfortably.

And turned her head when someone else walked in, blinking at the sight of the familiar blonde while nearly feeling Jess next to her freeze up as her friend followed her gaze.

"Ah… a party?" Gabriel grinned toothily toward Jess's glare, then unceremoniously walked across the room, pulled a free chair next to her on the side opposite to Alisaie and dropped on it, then leaned toward her fuming friend. "Hey, darling. Cute outfit."

Alisaie could literally hear her friend grinding her teeth, and that made her bit back a smirk, betting Jess was blushing under her makeup as she huffed with indignation and looked forward.

"Nobody asked your opinion," she replied hauntingly, and across the table, Alisaie saw Damon frown briefly, looking between the two of them before his eyes downright sparked with… something she didn't recognize but was suspicious about. Then his expression turned far too innocent as he leaned against the table on his elbow, resting his chin on his palm as he addressed Jess.

"My… the hostility is palpable," he drawled slowly, and her friend blinked as her eyes swiveled toward the redhead. "I would have expected that you would jump on the occasion to interrogate a Pyre, Jess. What gives…?"

"Perhaps I would… if someone bothered to explain what the fucking 'Pyre' was!" Jess snarked, throwing her hands in the air with annoyance.

"Oh, I forgot to mention…?" Damon smiled at her slyly as he pointed his free hand toward the blonde next to her, which had Jess look toward her 'archenemy' reluctantly. Gabriel meanwhile looked between them with raised eyebrows over his amused, dark-green eyes. "Gabe's here a representative of your favorite creature of the night… literally, Jessica. 'Pyre' as if in 'vampire,' my dear," and he snickered when the brunette gasped while Alisaie regretted that like this she couldn't see her expression at that.

"Not a vamp, though," Gabriel hummed, wiggling his eyebrows playfully toward her friend. "And if you feel like interrogating me, spitfire… I might be open to that," he smirked, and she heard Jess grind her teeth again.

"You're fucking annoying, that's what you are," the brunette replied, shifting in her seat uncomfortably for a second before she hissed a curse under her breath and shook her head when the blonde snickered at her.

Speaking about being oblivious… Alisaie shook her head behind Jess's back, involuntarily giving Gabriel a sympathetic and what she hoped was an encouraging look while her friend couldn't see it. Clearly, he was interested, but knowing Jess and now a tad more about her experience…? She nearly accidentally caught Damon's stare across the table, and internally she would be inclined to bet that he thought the same: Jessica couldn't imagine or understand that someone could be interested in her, perhaps… similarly to his twin and this whole hybrid/wolf conundrum across the table.

But opposite to Raha, her friend was single and definitely could use someone's attention to at least let her build back her self-confidence. Especially when, without this whole makeup that more and more seemed like a shield, she was really cute by herself. Temperamental, yeah, but also kind, brave, and though it was hard to notice at first… quite shy. And when Alisaie looked back at Gabriel, he did seem… more than interested.

Though, of course, given the opportunity, she had to pull him aside and let him know what would happen if he dared to break her friend's heart… if he really wanted to get under Jess's spiky demeanor.

"All done," Rahm announced, pushing the open boxes in the middle of the table and startling her out of watching the exchange of stares. "Sen, do you mind?" he added, pointing toward the pieces set aside.

"Not at all," Senri grinned, and those offending desserts disappeared.

"You could have left it for our less… Miqo'te guests, though," his lover remarked in a grumble, looking between the two of them.

"Ah, true," Rahm sighed, and suddenly a plate with the exact same pieces appeared next to him. He pointedly pushed it toward where Alisaie and Jess sat, who gawked between it and him.

"Rahm always had a knack for creating food," Senri announced proudly, grinning toothily toward his best friend.

"I think it's more about the fact that they didn't see Seekers' magic at work before," Damon hummed with amusement, and Alisaie snapped her mouth close, feeling her face heat up.

"Don't worry," Raha said toward her with a grin. "I had the same reaction. It's really something, right? For us, unmagical humans, anyway."

"Are you still a human, though?" Jess chimed in suddenly if nothing but only interest in her eyes as she leaned forward, looking between the twins. They exchanged a glance, then sent her an identical grin.

"We are…" Damon started.

"…partially, at least," Raha finished.

"You're demigods," Fenris grumbled with something almost like an annoyance, and Raha shifted again to look at him as he snickered before looking back at his twin.

"He really doesn't like humans, right? Does that count as racism, D?" he asked with an arched look.

"He's not in any part human… so species-sm sooner, I suppose," Damon looked around him toward the wolf with a smirk, and Fenris, in turn, sent him a glare… and almost pouted when both twins snickered at his expanse.

"I would say I'm the most tolerant creature in existence," the Wolf snarked. "Since I hate everyone equally."

"Awww… cranky much?" Damon asked him with sarcastic air and a haughty look. "And for the record… you should be pleased, Fen. I count at least four people by this table who aren't affected in any way by your… presence," he added mysteriously, pointing toward Senri, Rahm, Jess… and her. Alisaie blinked, looking between them with a confused frown. Noticing that Damon smirked and turned toward her. "Tell me, Alisaie… Does Fenris seem unsettling to you?"

"Um…" she trailed off, looking toward the frost wolf and wondering why he looked so surprised looking between those who Damon pointed toward. "…no? I mean, he does look quite unique, but… honestly? I love your tattoos," she said toward the ink-skinned male, who seemed to startle a bit, and his eyes grew somewhat… enormous in his face.

"Rahm…? What would you say?" the redhead turned toward the blonde, who shrugged slightly, looked the wolf over carefully, and then returned the stare of crimson eyes.

"I'm not sure what you want me to say, syid," he shook his head and looked toward Fenris again. "I would say, since he's the only non-human in here I never met before, he seems… soothing? I don't know how to explain it… but since I walked in, it seemed… seems easier for me to focus… I think."

"Curious," Damon hummed with interest, looking toward Senri next. "And you, Sen… I mean, other than the obvious," he snarked and looked at his twin innocently when Raha frowned with confusion, leaning away from his boyfriend's chest to look in his face.

"…obvious?" he asked, then looked around them all, and Alisaie stopped herself from rolling her eyes… barely.

Meanwhile, Senri frowned and tilted his head to look at the ink-skinned male with consideration, then shrugged somewhat helplessly when he looked back at Damon.

"Other than that… I would agree with Rahm, I guess."

"Wait… other than what?" his lover scowled, tapping his hand against Senri's chest to get his attention.

"Other than him having hots for you, kitten," Senri deadpanned, and while Raha blinked at him owlishly, she nearly exhaled with relief that someone finally addressed the elephant in the room. Or the wolf… to be more precise.

"Don't be ridiculous," Raha muttered, then turned his head to look at Fenris. "He does not…"

"Guilty as charged," the Wolf grinned at him… well, wolfishly, and the redhead's eyes grew huge… and his face so red it rivaled the shade of his hair. "Gods, but you're cute…" Fenris chortled when that earned him now audible snarl from Senri. "Calm down, boy, I don't go where I'm not invited… but I do appreciate your taste."

Senri tossed him a suspicious glare, then pulled his still apparently shell-shocked lover tighter against him, but he did soon looked a tad more relaxed when Damon cleared his throat to regain everyone's attention.

"What I meant to point out with that question…" he said, leaning forward to look toward the frost wolf. "…is the fact that you were wrong, Fen. Not every creature is unsettled by you, I guess. And though I can't be sure without testing in on a wider pool of subjects… by the fact that both Jess and Alisaie are completely human, I would take a guess that humans are naturally inclined toward… your element, which make sense after the lesson you gave us. Also, those more… inclined to it by character or experience, I guess," he added, pointing his finger between Senri and Rahm, who seemed as confused about that statement as she felt. "But, perhaps, that would be a good reason to rethink your apparent dislike for humankind, yes?" he added hauntingly, smirking toward Fenris' scowl.

A moment of silence followed, then the ink-skinned male exhaled slowly and nodded toward the redhead.

"Perhaps…" he hummed, then narrowed his eyes as he looked between the twins. "And I think I'm starting to see why Bast has such high hopes for you two, too. You can't help yourself, do you…?" his chair snapped to the floor completely, and then he motioned toward all present. "Miqo'te, human, Pyre and me… If you think about it, we should never be able to gather in one place and not be… well, at least suspicious of one another, yes? And I do feel… less of a dislike, as you call it, toward those girls than I know I would be normally inclined to on principle alone…" he trailed off, giving Damon a narrowed look.

"It's our nature to unite," Themis said softly, and everyone looked toward his serene smile while Alisaie's heart stuttered unevenly and her face grew hotter. She was glad he was looking toward the wolf, not at her, as she tried to get herself under control. "I suppose them being part human… affect how we're normally perceived by those around us. You can call it pheromones…" he shrugged slightly, elegantly, and turned his bright eyes toward her, smiling in a way that made her stupid heart decide to jump in her throat and pound furiously. "…or magic. The name doesn't matter, really, while the effect is the same either way. Our presence, by Mother's blessing, soothe and calm those around us, and our nature drives us to unite and offer succor to those who want it."

Jess gasped suddenly, and Alisaie, with effort, turned her eyes away from the blue ones, alongside everyone else, gawking as the brunette pushed her seat back, jumped to her feet, and her hand shot to point toward the twins.

"It's you!" she gasped again, her eyes as huge as the boys' eyes were confused at her outburst. "Don't you get it?!" she motioned toward Themis impatiently, then back to them. "What he said… Fuck, Damon, think! Did your parents never tell you that our town wasn't always sooo fucking peaceful?" she trailed off meaningfully, and the older redhead's face bloomed with understanding while they both turned her gaze toward Raha.

"…huh?" his twin brother looked between them with a confused frown… apparently refusing to acknowledge what even Alisaie quickly picked up on, staring at him with an open mouth.

"Again… I was too far behind," Damon drawled, smirking toward his brother. "But you, Raha… You were fucking living sedative! Likely, since we were born. I'll call our parents later and make sure, but I think Jess'a guess is quite accurate… and we can definitely use that going forward."

"That… can't be right, though?" Raha muttered, looking between him and Jess, then toward his lover and back at Damon. "I mean… I was picked on and… all. If you're… what I think you're getting at would be true, then why…?"

"Perhaps because, dear brother of mine…" Damon hummed with considering, cold logic. "…you do tend not to appreciate yourself as much as you should. You care about others much more than you care about yourself, Raha… Would that affect that, Themis?" he asked across the table, and she saw him nod hesitantly in her peripheral vision. "See… It's like they say: you have to love yourself before loving others," Damon winked at his twin, who suddenly seemed extremely… uncertain, visibly curling into his lover's arms. Senri tightened his arms around him securely and nuzzled into his ear, purring…

…and after looking at them, Alisaie dared to turn her head and look at Themis fully, even as her face started to burn again. And she – somehow – didn't even flinch or felt embarrassed when he smiled at her, in this strangely sweet and adoring way of his, then delicately took hold of her hand between their seats. His was so warm… and soothing when she looked at their hands when he gently laced their fingers, she couldn't resist but shyly return his smile.