If anyone ever asked T'senri if he wondered how it would feel to be literally worshipped (he didn't), he would laugh at most. Used by now to his title's fame and coming with it responsibilities – the need to curb his instincts and play up to his Warrior persona – yet… the pure, undiluted adoration Themis displayed toward his immortal passenger… made him feel quite uncomfortable. And the apparent amusement of the accompanying them immortals wasn't helping him any, either!

But who could blame him? After the 'boy' adjusted his size to one more fitting with the rest of them, he trailed after him and Ares like… a lost kit. And his too-bright, blue eyes shone with so much… devotion whenever turned toward them – to Ares, really – he didn't even blame his immortal when under the poorly sounding excuse he gave him back the control of their body – making Themis's attention somewhat... diminish slightly.

That is – until Hades with some amusement relayed to the young-looking immortal Ares's and Damon's efforts in making him whole again – and if possible, Themis grew even more enamored with his hero – to the point of it somewhat spilling to T'senri as well while Ares refused to take over again… only grumbling incoherently in the back of his head when Damon cackled madly despite his clear exhaustion.

Trying to ignore the young immortal when they settled down in another room of Hades's domain – this one more furnished, with few quite comfortable seats – while Damon leaned against him slightly on a big, black couch, T'senri fought to make sense out of what the immortal living inside his lover explained about their upcoming task.

"I don't understand," he admitted finally with a sheepish smile, looking around the present. Hades and his lover took places opposite of them while Themis settled on the ground, leaning back against the seat next to T'senri's legs – and he pointedly avoided looking toward the boy – still somewhat… unnerved about the change in him in comparison to the Elidibus he clashed with before. But considering his promise to Ares… he bit back a sigh and sent the boy an uncertain smile – trying not to flinch when his face immediately lit up with a grin. Really… so weird… "Why Raha has to win you over?" he frowned toward Damon, then his gaze shot to Hythlodaeus when he snickered for some reason while Hades sighed and rolled his golden eyes at his lover.

"It's quite… complicated, Senri," Damon narrowed his eyes at Hyth, before turning them to him and smiling sheepishly. "You see, here… before you met me, I spent a hundred years with Raha by that point – if he was unaware of that fact – while when you'll head to Elpis… well, the me you'll meet…"

"Is a snob," his mouth uttered without his intent while he was pushed back and Ares took over with a chuckle, leaning back against the backrest of the couch and pulling his husband tight against his side, pressing a kiss on his cheek when Damon downright pouted at the remark. "You were, love."

"Father was always very… aware of his intellect," added Hades carefully, looking above their heads while his lips tilted in a slight smirk. "And would not waste his precious time on anything less than… what he found interesting."

"Mhmm… a snob," Ares chortled, despite how Damon painfully nudged their side with his elbow. "But that wouldn't be much of an issue… if not for the fact that while I was always… reluctant – then even more than now – to use my gift… Well, Damon didn't have this kind of scruples. And if he – past him, I mean – will see us as a threat…"

"…we're dead," Damon said sheepishly with a slight shrug.

"And if you'll… bore him," added Hythlodaeus with a snicker. "You can forget about getting his attention – or Ares's – past him, I mean – as he was ever utterly… umm…" he turned his amused, purple eyes at his lover and raised his eyebrows slightly.

"Whipped, as I believe mortals call it," Hades finished with a mean smirk, narrowing his eyes at his brother. "I do not remember… those few days I spent in Elpis, as I said – but if you came there and met that other Senri… I believe you said that it didn't go that well?"

"Ares almost choked the life out of him," Damon said easily, tossing his husband a little narrowed look.

"He killed you in that timeline," Ares shrugged helplessly. "Or rather… you let him kill you," he added on a drawl at which Hades looked away, coloring slightly and clearing his throat. "And that… upset me," the immortal chuckled somewhat sheepishly, then sighed and shifted slightly in his seat, tightening his arm around Damon's shoulders. "But the point is… As Hythlodaeus suggested if you don't earn that Damon's interest – our plans are doomed."

Huh? T'senri hummed with confusion. But can't then Damon… I don't know, talk with himself? I would think that is sure to get his past self interested…?

Ares sighed but repeated his question out loud.

"Normally, yes, that would be an easy solution," Damon sighed tiredly, leaning his head against Ares's chest and closing his eyes. "But I'll be… otherwise occupied, Senri. The moment we land back in our world… well, I have my plans… if you got it?" he tilted his head slightly to look at his son, who nodded toward him and Damon sighed with obvious relief. "Good… You see, boys," he said toward him and his own host – whom he could feel listening as well. "Since after we come back here – after that trip – we will be blind about what's coming… which I honestly, don't much appreciate… I'm planning to do everything we can to ensure our… survival. This timeline's survival. So somewhat using the idea of the Crystal Tower for inspiration, I asked Hades to prepare for me something… similar," at that, his son raised his hand and snapped his fingers – and a very long chain of connected, blue crystal appeared in his and Hythlodaeus lap, spilling over to the floor. "This long…? Lovely…" Damon sighed with obvious relief, then closed his eyes again and a slight, devious smirk fluttered over his plush lips. "You'll have to wear it, Raha… Yes, you do… Silly boy, you can wrap it tightly around your arm and cover it with your sleeve… that's all. No… it's not my fault that your mind went to a gutter instantly," he snickered… but T'senri didn't blame his mate – as his own mind all too readily followed, imagining that chain wrapped around his lover's beautiful body in a more… interesting way. Ares hummed with an obvious agreement and he snickered, wondering if he still can convince his lover later to rethink the placement of that… adorning. "Anyway… Those crystals – all of them – are a bit similar to the Tower itself, if without the option of a siphon."

"Had to sacrifice that in favor of more capacity," added Hades, running the delicate-looking chain between his fingers absentmindedly. "While still not as 'endless' as the Allagan creation – each one of those should be able to hold a massive amount of aether… And I do mean the one of the original density, not this… diluted one here."

Ohhh, T'senri gasped and Ares nodded automatically, smiling.

"Yes, my boy," he said out loud. "While we will be busy… gaining our attention and all, Damon will be filling these beauties with an amount of aether that will – hopefully – allow us some… levity once we're back. Since my capacity is… well, not so good, he's…"

Huh? What do you mean? He asked with confusion, unconsciously almost shuddering at the reminder of the sheer scope of the aether he felt when his immortal fixed his… slip back in the First – when he almost killed them both by unknowingly stopping the time.

"Eh… that is nothing, believe me," Ares chuckled sheepishly, following the trail of his thoughts. "Comparing to other of our people – not even trying to count Hades into that, since his reserves were always quite… unique – I'm more of a weak link in that area."

Though he was utterly blown away by that statement, Damon made it only worse.

"True," he hummed with some amusement, tapping his hand against his husband's thigh. "I had this theory that his… lack of aptitude to creation magic is in some way caused by his gift – which, by the way, more than makes up for it, anyway. Since it twists the aether around him in unnatural ways, he has no use for his own high stores of it, I thought. Though, if my observations are correct, here it's much more potent than it used to be back then," he hummed without opening his eyes, sounding somewhat sleepy. "Or perhaps it's just here aether is so less… dense…"

"My poor heart," Ares cooed, pulling Damon in his lap and engulfing him in a tight embrace. His husband didn't resist, only humming and curling into him with a quiet sigh. "I think, that's enough for now," he stood up, putting his arm under Damon's knees and holding him tight against his chest while he nodded toward his brother and his lover, then looked down at Themis with a smile. "If it's okay, boy, stay here with Hades and Hyth, okay? Damon's exhausted, so I'll get him in our host's ne… bed, and we will return when he gets some proper rest."

"No! I mean…" Themis shoot up to his feet, then flinched and dropped his eyes as his youthful face colored darkly. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to… but… you just came back, Ares… after everything… and…"

"He's afraid if he let you off his sight you'll disappear," Damon chuckled fondly, then sighed and peered through his lashes at the boy. "It's fine… Most Scions is probably at the Annex, and like this… none of them should recognize or connect him to Elidibus they knew… so he can stay with us until we go to Elpis. Make up a story, Senri, and ask Tataru to give him one of the empty rooms…" he trailed off, then sighed softly, and soon first rumbling snore-purr left his lips.

"Okay," Ares said, tightening his arms around his sleeping lover, then narrowed his eyes at the boy slightly when Themis raised his with a quite hopeful expression. "But if any of the Scions shows up… you'll behave, yes? No trailing after us and singing my praises…" he almost rolled his eyes when the teen-looking immortal instantly nodded eagerly, despite some strange glint in his bright eyes. "And we will ask Tataru to get you some proper outfit… if you want to stay with us, you have to blend in," he added when Themis frowned, looking over himself somewhat self-consciously. He still wore that strange white robe – though now adjusted to his size. If not for the too-bright eyes and almost unnatural beauty of his features, T'senri would easily take him for perhaps seventeen-year-old Hyur – in nothing reminiscent of the Elidibus he met over the years.

Damon's doing, Ares hummed at him. I'm guessing he used his gift not only to open the vessel and make sure Themis is properly rejoined but as well turned him back to the boy we parted with back then. I'll have to ask him later, but I suspect he does remember all those things that happened since then – in some form at least.

I'm kind of… glad for that, he admitted sheepishly. It makes it easier to fulfill that promise to you, Ares.

You and me both, my boy, his immortal chuckled. As embarrassing as his attitude is… I did miss him. Hopefully, like Hades, after a while, he'll get over his… ah, how Damon called it?

Separation anxiety, T'senri supplied helpfully – though, he quite suspected that in Themis's case it's a bit more complex than that – and opposite to Ares seemed to think, Hades also wasn't over his either, of his scowl was any indication… At Ares's internal sigh of resignation, he chuckled. Well, can't really blame them… I can't imagine – after that long – to have you back…

I know, I know… Ares replied with some amusement. "Okay, Themis, you can come with us," he said out loud to the boy's instant grin. "Hades, Hythlodaeus… I'll see you when Damon recovers," he turned his eyes toward his brother and scowled when Hades in turn tossed him a slightly… mean smirk, then stood up with Hythlodaeus following suit quickly.

"You seem to misunderstand something, brother," the white-haired immortal stated hauntingly. "Our deal was – we stay away until Zodiark is gone, and allow you your… games in the meantime. When you go back to Elpis, we…" he pointed between himself and the other two immortals in the room. "…will strengthen the aether currents around the Source to keep back this… dynamis you mentioned. But until then… we're free to come and go as we please, yes?" he raised his eyebrows pointedly.

Ares worked his jaw, narrowing his eyes.

I'll ask Tataru to prepare two bedrooms, T'senri offered with a chuckle, that had his immortal growl at him.

"Fine," he said out loud, then tightened his arms around his husband's before teleporting them right to Dawn's Respite. "Gods, spare me clingy immortals…" he grumbled under his nose before the others could have time to follow.

You're enjoying it, admit, T'senri chortled at his immortal's expanse.

Shush, Ares hissed, but could barely hide his grin when the others appeared and looked around with some interest. "Give me a moment to get Damon settled… and Senri will have your accommodations covered," and before they could say anything, he headed toward their bedroom.