Since moving into the shapeshifters lair, Raha's life changed quite dramatically. Well… that was quite an understatement, but overall, day by day, he was only increasingly loving his new life.
Before the Halloween party and everything that followed – and it was quite difficult for him to comprehend the scope of it when he realized that it's been only three days – he and Senri developed a sort of routine. Honestly, he was very much used to his lover's constant, devoted companionship… so perhaps he was a tad miffed to wake up to his mate's absence in their nest.
…and maybe a little worried, too, because it was very much not like Senri to leave their nook without waking him up… or something. In previous weeks, he got used to waking up to his shapeshifter's heated embrace and, more often than not, an even hotter kiss or caress.
Not today. And Raha found that he very much didn't appreciate that.
Rubbing the sleep from his eyes, he stretched his arms and wings with a jaw-breaking yawn before exiting the nest and looking around with a frown.
Since he moved in, their nook had changed quite a bit from its initial state. It got bigger for one to accommodate the more modern, human-invented additions he found himself hard-pressed to part with. With another separated nook to serve as a bathroom (and made him very much appreciate his lover's half-Keeper nature) and the addition of something he thought of as his 'cranny' of their nook, it was a creative mix of very much everything he ever wanted to have. It was almost too easy while having a very devoted boyfriend determined to fulfill his every whim and able to create pretty much anything as long as he was shown the schema of it.
Expanding the nook, they kept the towering 'cat-house' Raha came to love, especially while in his true form, and with theirs already being bigger than most, he perhaps did let his imagination carry him off a bit… not that Senri ever minded making for him whatever he asked for. No, he was literally the happiest silly cat whenever introduced to a new 'blueprint' – as he called it – and often, his creations ended up actually looking and working a lot better than the original.
Raha remembered with a smile how relieved they were – Damon and him – when they learned that both Ares and Hades were quite open to the idea of improvements they suggested. Now, he knew a tad better that it was caused by their 'holy' status among the shapeshifters, but initially, it was a relief to introduce things like plumbing, electricity, and – in chosen and carefully monitored areas of the lair – access to the internet and television. About those things their hybrids were a tad wary of – especially the internet and TV – but eventually, with Damon's curious take to screen both, they let themselves be convinced of the benefits of it.
Before Halloween, they introduced the idea of placing a massive screen in one of the empty, bigger nooks and creating a sort of cinema for their cats. Of course, anything that would be screening in it was to be first watched and approved by the Clan's Elders – a council of sorts counting ten elected older Seekers who were responsible for the education of the youngest generation within the lair. Damon wanted to use this – the cinema's idea – to carefully introduce the shapeshifters to the pros of coexistence with humans, among other things.
What very much worked to their benefit was the fact the Elders were extremely devoted to Bast, and for them, the words of an Allag were an undeniable law far, far above whatever even Ares would say about the idea. And while Raha found it quite humbling and perhaps a little intimidating, Damon definitely wasn't above using it to their advantage. Not that his twin would ever use that unreasonable power over the shapeshifters' minds to harm them – something that Raha was very much convinced of – but considering the task Bastet assigned them with… well, they decided that before they could think of introducing the Miqo'te to humanity, they had to give their silly cats a tad better idea of how exactly the human society worked and looked like.
Actually, they very much wanted to avoid making the shapeshifters experience a sort of cultural shock if their community was introduced to some of humanity's ideas in an uncontrolled way. At the end of the whole week leading up to the party – other than preparations for it in the last days – he and Damon spent discussing in his twin's 'command center' as Raha jokingly called the nook of their yesterday's meet-up, what exactly is and would be best and worst they could bring or warn about their cats. Joined occasionally by either their respective lovers who listened in with interest, they were still quite stuck on some of their ideas – and a tad alone with the whole thing while their silent observers themselves had quite a poor idea of humanity in general.
The most informed of humans was obviously Ares – considering that he traveled a lot since taking over the Clan, and after their 'coming out' he dealt with quite a number of humans while, alongside the other Clans' leaders, they were establishing the rules of the upcoming 'coexistence' that now, decades later, was something that the twins grew up to. A fundamental they planned to build on and expand.
Raha knew – now as earlier he scarcely listened to his twin's rants about it – that, for example, there were actually laws set in place that, up to this day, remained never actually used. Considering that after their emergence, the Miqo'te pretty much quickly moved on and went back to their own communities and lairs, though humans knew about them, they had literally no idea about their culture or habits. While the areas around the lairs that Miqo'te claimed were marked off on maps Raha grew up knowing, it was Damon's obsession and research into them that taught him that there was a wholly separate section of the human government, law, and enforcement that was created with the thought of protecting the peace accord between humanity and the shapeshifters. Now, they also knew that while most of the other Clans Alphas swiftly lost interest in interacting with humans, Ares actually made it a point in between his other tasks to keep track and in contact with said agency. Just in case, mostly – if there was a problem – and he remembered his brother scowling at the 'stupidity' of the human side of that agreement in not insisting on a more thoughtful relationship and research with shapeshifters.
Now, they had a better idea of the reasons behind it, obviously. Even Ares – progressive thinking as their Alpha was – sometimes found some things about the human society too absurd to understand, and while he was determined to respect their customs as much as he could, heard his younger brothers were very determined to keep their father's Clan safe. But with a somewhat poor idea of some rules that for humans were obvious, eventually, they elected to close off like other Clans – mostly burned by the occasional 'visits' of the crazies lured in by the myth of immortality.
In short, the coexistence between humanity and the shapeshifters was more of a pact of non-aggression, with both sides keeping well away from each other and something they intended to change… if very, very carefully. And very much aware after Ares's explanation, that all the while they set to that, the Coalition of the Others was bound to watch their efforts more than closely. And considering that right after that explanation, their lair was visited by Raphael, who in its name was designed to… well, sort of take gauge of the mythical Allag and their plans.
It was weird and unnerving to be the center of so much attention, but when Raha thought about it, he quite understood the Coalition's apprehension about introducing the Allagan variation. With Ares – and Miqo'te – being exposed even as little as they were by that point, the other creatures of the gods were wary of the same happening to them in some uncontrollable way. And after quite a thoughtful lesson both Ares and Raphael gave them of the various ways humans over the ages 'burned' their impressions on the Others… well, he definitely didn't blame them!
It was a strange idea in his mind at some level – whenever he thought of it. Objectively speaking and from the perspective of someone who sort of was in between those two very different worlds, he tended to think that it was a little sad that it came down to the fact that both sides were quite literally terrified of the other. Damon, Raha knew, generally blamed it on the lack of information… and, yeah, humanity's history and reputation that they weren't even aware of!
…not to mention the whole other can of worms in the case of religion!
While in Gatesville, it was quite a non-existent issue, Raha knew that when they set to introduce their cats – how they really are, that it – to the wider world, the biggest issue both he and his brother expected was the pushback from Christianity – still quite dominant faith in the western world. While Damon had the whole statistics and diagrams about it – Raha thought of it in simpler terms: back when Miqo'te made themselves known, someone had the 'brilliant' idea to rejuvenate the crumbling religion with the idea that actually the shapeshifters were servants of the devil and meant to bring about the Apocalypse.
…well, if one thought about the darker side of the history of Christianity, it wasn't a new idea at all. Raha cringed internally whenever that brought back in his mind the lessons about the Inquisition and such. According to Damon's lectures, something similar was very much a cause of the initial conflict with the shapeshifters after their emergence. Not that the Inquisition 2.0 had much of a chance against the Keepers and their magic, though. Those were definitely a far cry from the helpless victims accused of heresy in previous ages and had very little patience for anyone dumb enough to come spewing their bullshit anywhere near their kind – and in that case, humanity's ignorance actually worked to Miqo'te benefit with them being unaware of the difference between the Seekers and the Keepers. Burned while the warring Clans initially protected each other, they thankfully came to eventually keep their nonsense – physically at least – well away from the lairs, and by the time the Clans split once more, it was just how it was.
However, with their town set in the shadow of one of the biggest lairs – carefully marked off in every single map Raha ever saw – the community and habits around Gatesville were very different. Though the shapeshifters themselves appeared like more of a myth than reality, they grew up very aware of their 'neighbors.'
For example, close to his upbringing (and Damon's, in a way), though their parents and most of the townsfolk called themselves Christian, their take on it was a tad different than in other and bigger cities. Especially – apparently, if he still struggled with the idea of their revelation – after his birth.
Yesterday, after his altercation with Fenrir, he dragged his lover straight to his twin, and apparently, the Wolf's 'slip' – as Damon snickered – was something that appeared to confirm the theory his brilliant brother apparently was edging against. A theory that quite stumped Raha.
Damon – though still not exactly clear what it meant – proposed that they weren't, in fact, demigods as they were led to believe. No, his twin, with a somewhat strange glint in his eyes, offered that there was quite a good chance that they were – or, to be more precise, Allag were demi-primordials, impossible as it should be apparently. His brother was convinced that Bastet sort of… overdid it when asking for blessings from Primordial Gods while creating Allag. They, of course, had no real way to confirm it – not without a way to ask those involved, or rather… not daring to ask them – but his twin, with almost amused air, announced that it was a conclusion that for him made most sense. Their quirks and magic – for him – were just a tad… too much, even when compared not only to Miqo'te but also other… Others.
And while he was busy trying to wrap his head around that idea, his twin called their parents, put them on speaker, and straight up asked their dad – who picked up the phone – when exactly this uncanny peacefulness ruling in Gatesville started. Their father was quite surprised by the question, but with his somewhat uncertain answer and brief calculations, Damon – after changing a topic and brief chat – disconnected the call, then grinning at him, said:
"So… weird coincidence, right?" he deadpanned. "If Dad got it right, they first noticed that strange sensation of tranquility nearly eight months before our birth. I can bet: when you started to develop in mom's womb to be a tad more than a fetus. Which… ding, ding, ding… confirms Jess's guess, bro. You're fucking walking sedative, Raha, isn't that cool?"
"…considering I was still bullied?" he replied wryly at the time, but his twin looked lost in thought and not listening.
"Make sense though… with Jess, I mean. This whole blowout with her friend, you know?" Damon hummed with distraction. "If I'm not wrong, that was somewhat about when you got… sick, wasn't it? And then the whole thing with Allison… I remember thinking that you were looking incredibly tired at the time…? Was it somehow connected…?"
And if Raha thought to it… it fit. It was about that time when he started avoiding sleeping, heartsick over the maddening visions of his cat-like teen…
"Who's Allison?" asked Ares, who was sprawling in his true form in his and Damon's nest.
"A girl who assaulted me," his brother replied, still with that absentminded expression… and opposite to Raha, who flinched, he clearly missed the very focused gaze of both present hybrids. Senri, who in a humanoid form was Raha's 'seat' on the ground between their brothers, served him a 'feedback' of chill while his eldest brother seemed to calmly move, raising his triangular muzzle to look toward his lover while his sky-blue eyes looked a tad glassy.
"…excuse me?" he finally drawled, and his twin seemed to register what he said, turning away from his laptop and leaning against the backrest of his chair as he sent his lover a slight smirk.
"Cool it down, kitten," he rolled his eyes. "She's long gone from the town. I went out on a date with her to see what the whole thing was about… and she had an issue taking no for an answer until I pretty much bitchslapped her… so nothing for you to get 'chilly' about, okay?"
Ares sent him at that long stare – most likely indicating that it would be something they would discuss when alone – but only ground his fangs loudly and lowered his head back to his paws, closing his eyes. Seeing the tension present in his massive form, Raha decided to skip, pointing out that that evening, his twin came home sporting a split lip. He was right; she was gone, and there was no point in spiking the hybrid's temper over it.
"On the other hand…" his twin drawled, and when Raha looked at him, Damon had a downright evil glint in his crimson eyes as he stared above his head… toward Senri, who, with his arms crossed over Raha's chest, rested his chin on top of his red hair. Sitting between his crossed legs, Raha frowned at his brother, wondering what the devious smirk on his face was about. "…there is still the issue of Brett to think about when we go back to school. He wasn't there before my… freak out, but I heard Dani say that his suspension was supposed to end the next day… so?" his gaze dropped to him, and Raha shifted uncomfortably, scowling at the reminder.
With everything else that happened, he pretty much forgot about the asshole and his cronies, Matt and Jim. But Damon was right… Wasn't he? Dani made it a point to tell them that Brett was coming back the next day – which would be yesterday – before the whole blowout with Damon and Ares… And, God, it felt ridiculous that it was so short when it felt so long… but, yeah…
What about Brett…?
"Who?" Senri asked, but feeling his muscular body tense around him and his tail – spanning Raha's waist possessively – tighten, he thought that his lover had a pretty good idea who they were speaking about… which his next words confirmed. "Wait… the blonde human kit who jumped you when we met? In reality, I mean?" he whispered, nuzzling his nose against his ear.
"Mhmm," Damon replied before he could. "It wasn't the first time, either, Sen. I don't think Raha would tell you, but I'm actually quite…" he added, tossing him a warning look when Raha opened his mouth to protest. "…worried here, brother." And that made him snap his mouth close and listen. Damon sighed and completely turned sideways on his seat toward them, his expression growing quite distant and considering. "Let me riddle you this, dear brother of mine. And do think of it objectively, okay? No matter your misgivings about the situation or our future, we have to think and plan in perspective of our goals, yes? I know you weren't aware of it, but Brett had a crush on you since middle school," he added softly, if coldly, while his jaw dropped. "Yeah, I know you didn't notice while our class had a good laugh about it. And since I… well, I wasn't clear on your sexuality, I very much refrained from pointing it out, especially since you didn't seem interested in him at all. Also, back then, it wasn't anything more than him making eyes at you whenever you weren't looking," he shrugged, then his expression hardened considerably when he looked up over Raha's head again. "But when we started high school it… changed. I don't know what exactly happened on Brett's end – perhaps he was offended that Raha refused to acknowledge his… interest, or maybe the company he got in shared… different views – but he and his buddies started to terrorize Raha daily and spewing whole fucking homophobic bullshit constantly… and, in the long run, if we don't approach this situation carefully, it can blow up in our faces, Raha. I don't think we can expect that this whole suspension would give them a change of heart… or that we can expect Senri not to react accordingly if they try something."
"He as much as looks toward you in a way I don't like, kitten, I'll tear him to shreds," an aggressive growl by his ear sent a shudder down his spine, but he kept his eyes on his brother, smoothing his hand soothingly over his lover's arm. Ares raised his head, narrowing his eyes as he looked between them.
"Homophobic…?" he repeated with confusion.
"Ah… It's something of a human term and misgivings about same-sex relationships, babe," his brother smiled at his mate fondly as they watched Ares's ink-black muzzle scrunch up in confusion as he twitched his long whiskers.
"Oh, because of their religion?" he hesitated, clearly considering it. "But 'phobic'? The way I was explained it, I thought it's more of a… custom because humans can't procreate with same-sex partners?"
"I suppose you can see it that way," Damon hummed, scratching his chin. "It did used to be a big thing back in the day, though I always thought of it as of… well, sort of intimidation tactic. In broad strokes, it's easiest to unite humans by giving them a common enemy, let's say, which your 'emergence' sort of proved, I guess. Before the Miqo'te, however, it was the people who somehow… stood against the norms that were the target of such. Like… anyone in some way considered different, you know? By skin color, beliefs, and, yeah, sexuality. Most human religions went even as far as denouncing same-sex relationships as an 'abomination,' and for a long while – to this day, even in some countries – you can be killed for it. The biggest challenge in our plan, actually, I expect, is dealing with that notion… sort of. I always thought that in our town, it wasn't really that much of an issue… but yeah, the community there is quite small and – apparently – sedated since Raha's birth. Actually… other than the whole Jess/Gina situation three years ago, I don't remember there being much of an issue in the area otherwise, and even that was caused by the whole 'consent' tilt to the whole thing…"
"Speak for yourself," Raha sighed, instinctively leaning slightly harder into his boyfriend's heat. "I was… terrified when I thought I was gay. You know, dreaming about Senri and all. Like… our parents are very good and loving, yeah, but other than the whole 'Miqo'te' issue, they're pretty religious, and I was scared out of my mind what would happen if they knew that night after night I was dreaming about a guy… Yeah, gorgeous, cat-like guy, but still…" he shrugged somewhat helplessly, feeling his face grow hotter.
"I think… they would be okay with that," Damon said with a chuckle. "Remember, they did raise us to believe in whatever feels right, and I don't think they would love us any less for our sexuality… If I can imagine that in the privacy of her mind, Mom would freak about not having prospective grandchildren, I guess, but that's about it... But, yeah, I can imagine that it was pretty scary to think about, Raha… If I'm still tilted, that you ever thought that I wouldn't understand or that you needed to hide your misgivings from me."
"Damon…" he shook his head and smiled at his twin sheepishly. "…I was most of all sure that I'm losing my mind, you know? And I was… embarrassed about falling in love with a figment of my imagination. Now I guess I was just a tad… too-less Allag for those dreams to let me fully interact with Senri, and, honestly, it was driving me insane."
"Same," Senri sighed by his ear, tightening his arms around him.
"But, going back to Brett…" Damon cleared his throat to regain their attention. "…he is a dumb jock with something to prove, brother. Most likely, that he didn't have hots for you this whole time. His buddies I worry about less because they're dumb like tons of rocks and only follow his example as far as I can tell. But he… might be dangerous to our cause, Raha. Letting Senri handle him according to shapeshifters' customs wouldn't be very productive if he dares to try something when we return. Revealing our nature and magic too soon is also… not recommended, but might happen if you're forced to protect yourself. But most of all – and that's actually my biggest concern here – is the fact that none of our silly cats would tolerate humans being disrespectful toward us, bro," he said carefully, and Raha saw Ares nod seriously.
"He has a very good point," their Alpha said slowly. "For ours to offend Allag is a grave sin, equal insulting Bast herself, Raha, and it's not somewhat that anyone would agree to… overlook," his muzzle looked somewhat sheepish as he used his hinder paw to nudge the red material wrapped around his throat meaningfully. "And it's not like – if something untoward happens in the town – Senri can let any slight toward you be left unanswered, kitten. With those still there present, watching over your father, something like that would return to the lair quickly, and ours would question Senri's… ah, commitment to you and your mating. His faith, basically. Whatever you wish to be protected or not doesn't really matter," he added when Raha opened his mouth to protest, and he hesitated. "It's more… well, everyone here loves Senri, but – like Hades and me – he is still a hybrid, boy. And while in other Clans we're very… revered for it, here Hepaistos's poison is still echoing, kitten. Also, knowing my baby brother… I don't think he could stop himself from slaughter if someone – anyone – would raise their hand on you," and his look toward Damon proved that he very much considered himself the same way.
"And humans are bound to react badly to something like that," Damon deadpanned, and he couldn't help but nod in agreement. "Not to mention, if we manage to achieve a peaceful coexistence in Gatesville and decide to spread… we can't reignite the fear of shapeshifters, Raha, as that is bound for conflict. I hope that by the time those two weeks are up, we'll have the backing of Erebus's Clan in hand – if I'm still waiting for movement on that part – but for the safety of all the other Seekers' Clans, we can't risk open conflict… not to mention its exact opposite of our goals."
"Yeah, I know…" he sighed. "But then what…? It's not like I can tell Brett to not be a dumb asshole, yeah? Not like I asked him to have… feelings for me or to try to punish me for it… or something."
"I mean… who says you can't, though?" Damon asked, and his eyes grew completely cold as he looked toward Senri over Raha's head. "Either Senri or Ares can easily convince the bastard that nothing ever happened, yeah?"
"It's not that easy, kitten," Ares sighed, and their gazes moved toward him. "It's one thing to compel one to do or not do something, but feelings…? It's not something that we can manipulate."
"But we can," Damon shot back with a scowl. "Given a moment, I think I can trample Brett's misgivings any sort of… direction we choose, yes? Convince him that he either always loved or hated Raha… Add to that the compulsion to erase the 'necessary' memories, and perhaps we can skip any… unpleasant side effect of that whole situation, yes?"
"I don't like the idea of 'trampling' anyone's feelings, Damon," he admitted softly and wasn't surprised to see his brother roll his eyes at him. "I'm serious… Just let me handle it, okay?" he asked, turning to look between his brother and lover. "At least at first… who knows, perhaps it's going to be enough if I have a good talk with him?"
"You're naïve believe in others isn't cute, brother," Damon snarked. "Especially when speaking of a stupid, hormonal teen with some dumb love/hate obsession at your point."
"At least let me try before moving to more drastic measures, okay?" he rolled his eyes, and it still took some convincing… but eventually, it settled on Raha's idea.
…but now, where did his shapeshifter wander off…?
Returning to reality, he hid his wings, then took a quick shower, dressed, and headed out of their nook searching for his lover. It didn't take long as the first met Seeker easily gave him a direction with the usual reverence.
Their lair had multiple levels, going from the ground level of the mountain's base both up and down – something almost like an anthill. With only one entrance guarded carefully by both the gate and posted guards, it filled the towering over the area mountain and went down underground quite deeply. He wasn't exactly sure how deep it went, other than that it took quite a while to get from their nook – in the above-ground level of the lair, to the so-called 'jail' in the deepest part of it. When Ares gave them the tour of the place, he told them that only after he took over the Clan did it start to look like that, as one of the first things he and Hades set to was expand the crowded space. The Seeker community inside, before, had to keep strict control over their reproduction if – as he told them – even while their Clans warred, up until the end of their sire's reign, it was a common thing for the Seekers to trade with Keepers. Offering provisions in exchange for help in expanding their home was beneficial to both sides… until, of course, Hepaistos set to ruin it.
By the time they got rid of the fucker, the lair was already too small for the number of Seekers who lived in it, so it was a blessing that they had three hybrids at hand (well, two, as Senri was too small at the time) eager to finally be able to use their earlier banned skills. If one looked carefully, it was actually pretty funny to see the difference in places that Ares pointed out as the ones they 'destroyed' before getting a proper tutor in Keepers' magic. Both hybrids admitted somewhat sheepishly that they did go a little overboard with the expansion, creating too many corridors and nooks, but since it was bound to naturally eventually fill out, they left it as it was – while the heavy decorations in gold, jewels and such were the work of the younger generation. Since those – jewels – were something of a side effect of an expansion and available in abundance, they served as one of the first 'blueprints' (other than food) that the young learned while training the use of their magic. And since their history taught them that their goddess's temples were heavily decorated with those… the result was obvious.
The corridors were also heavily decorated with pictographs depicting Bastet, obviously. Though, as they learned, Seekers tended to revere Her softer aspect the most, while Hades, with some amusement, told them that Keepers tended to lean more toward Her vicious aspect and the lair Hythlodaeus – and their mother – was from, very much reflected that. Damon summed it up – to Raha's amusement – with their later common tendency to call them – the Seekers – their silly cats because really most of it was Bast shown with the head of a cat and, more often than not… enjoying Herself in some very creative ways. (And only between each other he and Damon knew that 'silly' stood for 'horny,' but that was actually given with how devoted their shapeshifters were to the Goddess of Love and Pleasure).
Actually… he very much suspected – and knew his twin shared the sentiment – that Allag, even more heavily dedicated to that of Her aspects… was what made them quite… Well, was responsible for their 'quirks.'
…one very big reason why he intended to find his mate and drag his gorgeous ass back to their nest, really.
Frankly, since their first Shift – and after he a tad reluctantly compared notes about it with his shameless brother – they quickly realized that their sex drive was completely off the charts! Other than the fact that their moods and needs were often affected by those of their respective lovers – from a human perspective, their libido was very much… off.
Not really having a previous experience and, honestly, at first blaming raging hormones – something that Raha remembered reading on many occasions was normal for men his age, he was somewhat (actually very much) stumped when Damon one day asked him if 'he also got downright itchy' if he and Senri didn't fuck for a certain amount of time. Of course, at first, he freaked out – refusing to discuss that with his brother, especially thinking he meant to tease him about that. It took some coaxing on Damon's part, but finally seeing that for once he was actually serious, he did admit while blushing something fierce that he had no idea… because he didn't have an occasion to find out.
Damon, who admitted in turn that due to Ares's responsibilities, was often not seeing his lover as much as he would like, somewhat gingerly estimated that for him, the 'itchiness' started at about the eight-hour mark.
Now, walking toward the biggest nook inside the lair, Raha was inclined to agree – and he really didn't appreciate the sensation. It did vaguely remind him of that full-body itch he experienced when Hepaistos kidnapped them – if right now, the feeling was much, much more subdued and manageable. After discussing that they had a next lesson with Shtola, the older Allag seemed baffled by their surprise with that… but she, opposite to them, had quite a poor idea of human physiology or sexuality in turn.
"It's something that is connected to our nature and magic," she explained calmly at the time. "In simple terms, Brothers, the pleasure we take from our mates works to counterbalance the deadly aspect of our nature. Though… eight hours is a tad on the extreme side if your estimate is correct. Normally, the warning of the itch would manifest at about the twenty-four hours mark… so perhaps it's something you owe your human side? Amplification of sorts…?" and since she seemed uncertain, they left it at that.
…so, yeah, walking inside the nook he and Damon liked to call the 'social hub' of the lair, he was pretty fucking horny and fully intended to give his mate a lesson in manners… like, not leaving their nest unprompted without waking him up… and – most important – without fucking him senseless!
The social hub was really massive, and it was the same cavern where both Hepaistos's execution and later the Halloween party were held. Now, returned to its 'usual' setting, it was split into two parts. As he entered and looked around after his mate on the right side of the entrance, he easily spotted quite a group of Seekers lounging about the seats and benches and, for that reason, spread about the area. Chatting animated, some in the 'beast' form and some in other shapes, they thankfully didn't seem to notice him before he pointedly turned and headed left, involuntarily – and despite the itching annoyance – smiling when he spotted a familiar massive feline buried among the kits.
His annoyance melted away, really, as Raha remembered that Senri did tell him that he had been given a three-week 'leave' from his responsibilities to tend to him… a mark that passed with Halloween. And since their plans due to the situation with Ares and Damon changed… Well, apparently, his dutiful lover returned to his task unprompted without considering consulting him.
Sprawling on his side in the area destined for the kits of the lair, Senri looked absolutely stunning… and funny, with the much, much smaller Seekers in various colors apparently abandoning the various toys provided for their entertainment in favor of gleefully climbing the massive hybrid who allowed them that patiently.
"Morning," he said as he kneeled on one knee in the safe distance… not for long, as spotting and recognizing him was soon followed by squeals and the kits scrambling off Senri to dart toward him. Seeing the danger, he laughed involuntarily, shifting to his true form quickly and – for their benefit, because the kits were just too fucking cute – he pointedly expanded his wings wide, electing even more delighted squeals and purrs before he was 'taken down' by the horde.
At the moment, the number of the kits that weren't yet able to Shift – or use their magic – counted eighty-four young, with quite a heavy tilt toward the higher number of males than females. (Damon loved sharing his statistics with him). His twin found it interesting that, opposite to humans, it appeared that with shapeshifters, most of them tended to be born male – not that it really mattered for them later in life. They were also a reason behind their insistence on heavily managing and censoring any human-related media they were introducing.
When he got used to it, he actually very much appreciated the fact that the Clan's Elders very carefully raised the young without ideas like shame, gender, or sexuality. The kits were taught that what mattered the most was love – for them, a sure way to praise their creator. One thing that he and Damon wanted to change, however, was the Elders' previous insistence to teach them to be extremely wary of humans and avoid anything human-related.
They did understand their point, of course, and again, humanity definitely earned its reputation in the Otherworld… but for their plan to succeed, they wanted to teach their Clan that the coexistence with humans could bring their kind benefits.
Overall, it was the question of a balance – on all sides, and their goal was to unite the two worlds of their nature into one that would be safe for both. And as he laughed when slowly fluttering his wings to elect more delighted sounds from the adorable kittens, he looked over them toward a deeply enamored gaze of his lover's eyes. Senri, sitting up and waving his long tail enthusiastically… so impossibly, painfully gorgeous… His mind inadvertently slipped to when they were leaving his brother's nook, and Damon – not looking at him but toward his hybrid – called his name.
"…you know what it means?" he said so softly that he strained his ears to hear him. "If I'm right, and we're more than demigods?" And though he had his suspicions about what he wanted to say, he remained silent by the plate Senri was keeping open for him until his twin turned his head and looked at him with a hard and determined gaze. "Simple, really… It might mean that all of the Others are ours to protect, Raha. And I'm starting to think that none of it is accidental, either. I can almost feel under my skin that something is coming, brother… and that we should prepare the best we can for the storm."
Somehow, as ominous as it sounded… he only nodded, leaving for the night but now looking at Senri…? He actually quite expected that whatever reason or their task… there's no price too high for the wonder of his soulmate – and for him, he would do literally anything to keep him safe.
As the agreed upon yesterday hour approached, Fenrir tapped his fingers impatiently against his knee. Seated in the same spot as the day before by the edge of the river near the lair of Miqo'te, he couldn't help but look toward the path leading toward it with a mix of annoyance and anticipation.
…until a sudden sound tore him out of it, and his eyes, narrowed into slits, darted toward it. He scowled darkly at the sight of a familiar figure that definitely didn't fit among the lush greenery.
"Yo," he mock-saluted to the extremely tall angel, stalking toward him through the tall grass after folding his massive, black-steaked wings. "Fancy seeing you here, Daimon! What the fuck?" he stood up, resting his hands on his hips, and bounced on his heels – like this quite a bit taller than the male.
"Don't give me that bullshit, Fen," the angel growled in a deep voice that sound like a stone falling into the underground pond, his dead eyes giving Fenrir a deadpan stare as he stopped and pulled out a pack of smokes out of the pocket of his leather jacket. "Felt you crossing dimensions, asshole. You know it gives me creeps," the Abaddon snarked, then offered him the pack. Fenrir grinned, taking one and lighting it up.
Daimon Frey, the Abaddon and Dancing upon the Destruction, the Angel with the Key to the Abyss and such, was probably the only angel in existence that Fenrir actually liked.
…it said something about him that one of his rare friends was a technically half-dead angel, right? Perhaps because both within their respective pantheons were something of a pariah – Fenrir, the Wolf God of Chaos, and Frey, the Angel of the End – both destined to end the world.
…or so the story went.
"Aww, did you miss me, Frey?" he grinned toothily, fluttering his lashes, and the angel tossed him a killer deadpan glare, lighting up his cigarette.
"Immensely," he snarked, took a drag, and blew the smoke in Fenrir's face. "What you're up to, asshat? Thought you're busy chasing skirts all the way over in Norway these days."
"I like to expand my horizons occasionally," he smirked, wiggling his eyebrows playfully. "And you…? Don't tell me you came all this way just for me?"
"You wish," Daimon snickered. "Nah, I was on my way to give Lamp proper trashing… or have a drink at his expanse – I didn't decide yet."
"Lucy's here?" he asked, tilting his head curiously and pretending a surprise, despite already hearing from his father about Lucifer skipping the leash. He didn't even try to hide a smirk at Frey's nickname for the former ruler of Christian hell. Once Samael the Lightbringer... hence Lamp after Lucifer's failed rebellion. Angels... always so obsessed with their hierarchy and titles... "Since when?"
"Don't give me that crap, Fen," Frey rolled his eyes, then turned their endless abyss surrounded by thinnest ring of green at him. "Like I'll believe that Loki didn't already tell you all about it. He's been laughing himself sick since the news broke."
"Perhaps," he grinned with a wink. "Can't blame Him, though… It is pretty funny. Morningstar running a human bar… sounds like the beginning of a joke, no?"
"Laugh it out," Daimon grumbled, shaking up his wings with obvious annoyance. "Glad that at least someone can see the hilarity of the situation. Dżibril was up in my ass the whole last week about how I should grab the fucker and shove him back to hell before anyone realizes that there's no one upstairs to course correct."
"Ah, Gabriel… someone should stir that stick stuck up his ass," he said, and Frey snorted.
"Tell me about it!" he sighed and crashed the cigarette. "I swear I'm about to vacate and myself go see if Asmodai's a more pleasant neighbor. I hear he threw such a tantrum when he heard that Lamp left that they had to toss him out of his whorehouse down in Limbo."
"I still think they're fucking," he offered with a smirk and Daimon laughed. "Or… at least they used to, and maybe this is Lucy giving him a boot?"
"Beats me… and not like I care," Frey shrugged. "I'm just going to dutifully tell Lamp to get the hell… well, to hell, then try to get myself drunk enough to stand Gabriel's whining when Lucifer, the fucking rebel, refuses. Frankly, I don't give a flying fuck… but feel like joining, Fen?"
"Booze and ass-kicking…" he hummed with consideration, then sighed and shook his head. "Nah, sorry, pal… I'm doing a job for Father at the moment. Maybe next time?"
"Don't fucking jinx it," Frey groaned, shoving his hands in the pockets of his jeans. "I swear sometimes I feel like a fucking kindergarten teacher or something…"
"Are we disturbing something?" a cool – familiar – voice had them both look toward its source, and he grinned before registering two things:
One – the twins weren't alone.
Two… accompanying them girl with long, cobalt hair not only was a real fucking stunner – close to Bastet's beauty at least – but she also stared at him like… well, he wasn't sure, but the fucking sweetness incarnate dressed into a blue dress accenting her long braid had her dainty hands folded in front of herself and her sweet grin was downright blinding.
"Huh…? Oh, Miqo'te," he heard Daimon say from a very, very far away, and Fenrir blinked, then shook his head, narrowing his eyes toward the older of the twins and carefully avoiding looking anywhere near their… company.
"The fuck?" he asked suspiciously. "I thought I was clear that these lessons are supposed to stay between us, yes?"
"Circumstances changed," Damon smirked at him far, far too innocently, then pointed toward the girl while he refused to follow his gesture. "Calliope would be actually joining us, Fen. Who is your… friend?"
He glowered at the teen as he stumped out the cig in the middle of his palm while turning it to dust at the same time before he looked toward Frey, who apparently stubbornly refused to get a clue and get on his merry way, his dead eyes regarding the arrivals curiously.
"Daimon, those are my… task," he deadpanned, waving loosely toward the shapeshifters before pointing to the angel. "Daimon Frey, Abaddon, Dancing on Destruction… yadda, yadda, yadda…"
"Currently in between assignments, so absolutely about to become a very drunk Abaddon," the angel drawled, then tilted his head, looking where he refused to. "Oh, my… but that girl looks about to jump your bones, Fen… Girlfriend of yours?"
"Never!" the girl chirped so… enthusiastically that he actually blinked slowly and finally looked at her. "I'm not interested at all! You're so ugly!"
"Gee, thanks," he drawled, rolling his eyes before he turned his gaze toward the dark-haired angel of destruction. "See the respect I get from those punks?"
"Serves you right, asshole!" Frey laughed, then tapped his hand against his shoulder. "I'm off, but do let me know if you're tired of playing with kids and feel like joining my kindergarten, Fen."
"Yeah, yeah… Good luck with Lucy, and see you next," he waved, then watched Daimon laugh before he expanded his wings and launched into the air. With him gone, he crossed his arms over his chest and looked toward the Allagan monsters. "Again… I was meant to teach you two… only. So you can tell your rude friend to get lost," he stated with a deadpan expression and refusing to discuss it further. The twins exchanged weird looks, then Raha sighed softly and, taking hold of the girl's arm – who for whatever reason looked ready to burst into tears… not that he gave a fuck – delicately pulled her toward where Fenrir was standing, with Damon following behind them.
"That won't be possible, Fenris," the younger twin sent him a warning look when he scowled, and he worked his jaw, honestly pissed to high heavens that he cared about that look. He made his stance clear yesterday, dumbass, so get a grip…
"You don't get it, kitten," he growled with annoyance, feeling his brands writhe as his temper spiked. Easy, fucker… He took a deep breath, then exhaled slowly, counting to ten in thought before continuing. "You see, I was asked to teach you to control Chaos because you're part human; ergo, should be able to. I don't know who's your blue-haired friend here, but…"
"I'm not Calliope," the girl said, looking at him somewhat… sadly? Helplessly? "And I'm not yours."
He blinked rapidly, dropping his arms to his sides before scoffing.
"Well… duh, obviously," he rolled his eyes, then turned his eyes toward Damon when the older twin snickered. "What's so funny, pal?"
"Nothing much… Only, you see, Calliope here is cursed to always lie," Damon hummed, then tilted his head, moving to the girl's free side. "Moros, the apparent asshole, made it so every time she says the truth, something really bad happens, Fenris, so… think again."
"He's lying," the girl said quietly, looking at him pleadingly, and he blinked, looking between the three of them and wondering…what the fuck?
"Ugh, stop that, D," Raha sighed, then wrapped his arm around the girl's shoulders and tossed Fenrir a hard stare. "But he's saying the truth, Fenris. Bast sent her here this morning – because apparently your father and She made a deal…? You know, about a hybrid of frost wolf and an Allag," he added meaning and rolled his eyes when Fenrir frowned with confusion. "You see… Bast didn't appreciate your father trying to play Her, pal, so She upped the game… so to say. Calliope's yours, Fenrir… and if you dare give her a hard time about this, I'll kick your… butt," the normally sweet teen sent him another scorching, warning look…
…but Fenrir could only stare.
Notes:
Disclaimer: Daimon Frey isn't my character but one I've borrowed from the book "Siewca Wiatru." He might appear again - not sure, but I love to have him as the representative of the heavenly horde xD