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[weenwoon]

Hythlodaeus

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[weenwoon]

"Then why not start painting here?"

Hythlodaeus's reply is perhaps expected, given his optimistic nature. He makes himself comfortable in his seat - as comfortable as it's possible to be with Hades's utilitarian taste in furniture, that is - before going on:

"You could paint your pieces as Hades, not some assumed identity. And leave them for other riftfarers when we return to our own star."

Lest the conversation get too somber, though...

"I could even pose for you," Hythlodaeus adds with a grin, shifting to strike a pose in the chair.

[emet_sulk]

He rolls his eyes, unsurprisingly. "As if you could sit still for the time it takes to complete one."

But, hmm, he does have that portrait the old lady did for him some time ago. It hangs in his cabin on the Phantom Moon since such a magnificent work hardly suits such a drab apartment. He could learn to paint his friend and have them hung together in their new home above the Forge.

One last draw of the bow before he nods in satisfaction. "I'm ready."

[weenwoon]

"Certainly I can! With the right incentive," Hythlodaeus replies cheekily, making no mention of what the right incentive might be. He hasn't even actually thought of one; it's just for the sake of being contrarian.

Joking aside, though, he settles down to listen. He's heard a lot of music during his stay here, but he is still certain that whatever his friend plays will be different from everything else - and beautiful.

[emet_sulk]

Hades huffs. He sets his bow to the strings again and gives a moment's thought to what song he'll play. Something...characteristic of Garlemald? Yes.

Without another word, he starts to play a sombre melody. Not the triumphant anthems of conquest he grew tired of hearing as he aged but a quieter, melancholic piece written to embody the cold, overcast days out on the tundra. A piece well-suited to the accompaniment of a harp.

[weenwoon]

Hythlodaeus listens peacefully, his attention at first focused on Hades himself just out of the sheer novelty of seeing his friend play music. The piece itself... is perhaps a little more melancholic than he would have expected, yet somehow very fitting the man Hades is now.

Once he picks out the melody properly, Hythlodaeus takes up his own harp to play along, adding accents at first before embellishing parts of the melody. If Hades's violin is the winter day itself, Hythlodaeus's harp is the crunch of footsteps on crisp snow, the occasional glimpse of the sun, the intricate beauty of the snowflakes that stop on your finger.

[emet_sulk]

He can see it when he closes his eyes: the faltering glimpse of cold sunlight between the northern mountain peaks, the way it fractures over freshly fallen snow. His friend had always been talented - is talented - and their fingers can weave a beautiful melody even without their voice.

He eventually ends the piece on a low, drawn-out note that fades to silence. For a few beats, he remains still. Then he exhales and opens his eyes.

"The composer named it 'White Snow, Black Steel'."

[weenwoon]

"'White Snow, Black Steel'..." Hythlodaeus repeats thoughtfully. It does fit the image the melody creates - and perhaps it's the "black steel" that adds to that feeling of grim melancholy.

"Is it a dedication to Garlemald?"

[emet_sulk]

"It is. They wished to convey the serenity of the ice fields, separate from the industry of war which Garlemald developed from. That and the nostalgia for the more fertile lands they were forced to leave behind for those desolate mountains."

An underrated piece, Hades had always thought. It hadn't been terribly popular amongst the younger, war-hungry generations, but he knew some of the older citizens who remembered a time before Solus' rise to power would listen to this song and shed a hidden tear.

[weenwoon]

Hythlodaeus hums thoughtfully in response, his fingers quietly plucking out a short rendition of the melody again. Serenity of the ice fields... It's fitting.

"You know, you never told me much about Garlemald."

Perhaps it's not the perfect topic for what was meant to be a romantic evening, but Hythlodaeus picked up enough to tell that Hades cared about the country, despite his plans for it.

[emet_sulk]

"Did I not?"

He frowns slightly as he carefully packs away his instrument. Hmm... Maybe he did gloss over that part of his life.

After he closes the case and puts it away, he fetches the wine and glasses again and falls gracelessly on to the couch beside Hythlodaeus.

"Garlemald was...a cold place." Let him have a moment to snuggle against his friend. "Its people were driven there some centuries prior by others who found their inability to wield aether unnatural. In such cold climes, they had barely any food and what few resources existed were fought over bitterly by the tribes already there."

[weenwoon]

The way Hades flops on the couch elicits a smile from Hythlodaeus; it's always charming to see this side of his usually very uptight and serious friend. He winds an arm around Hades, wondering if this is perhaps the private plans he'd mentioned earlier.

"Mm... it sounds like a very harsh existence. But you came to love the land, didn't you?"

[emet_sulk]

"I wouldn't say I loved it," he grumbles, setting the glasses down to wrestle with the bottle's cork. "I hated how cold it was. But the people... I had to admire their resilience. If anyone deserved to be lifted out of suffering, it was them."

[weenwoon]

Hythlodaeus grins for a moment, imagining Hades bundled up in many layers and still grumbling about the cold.

"You know, your sentimentality is one of the things I've always loved about you," he remarks nonchalantly. "Sometimes I even envied you it."

[emet_sulk]

"You? Envy me?" Another twist of the corkscrew and the cork slips off with a small pop. He pours a modest amount into both glasses then sets the bottle on the table.

"Well, I sometimes wished I had your emotional distance. It would have made the Rejoinings easier to bear."

[weenwoon]

Lost in thought, Hythlodaeus jolts briefly when the cork pops. He picks up his glass when Hades pours it, swirling the liquid inside gently before answering.

"I do find myself wishing I could have taken on that part of the burden for you. But..." He takes a sip of the wine. "On the other hand, I could never have been as good a leader as you."

He exhales softly, leaning his head against Hades's.

"That was part of why I gave up the position of Emet-Selch to you."

[emet_sulk]

He gently rests his head against his friend's in turn. "I wish you had said something back then," he says quietly. "I assumed you were shirking responsibility on to another, as was your wont. We could have held the seat as a pair."

Nothing more than wishful thinking. By their time, each seat was held by an individual. He doubts the Convocation would have broken tradition, even with the most eloquent of arguments.

He tentatively reaches over with the hand not holding his wineglass and touches Hythlodaeus'. "Every time I stood before the masses, I would think of you. I imagined what you would say to sway them. I would...pretend I was you as I smiled and cajoled them. It was...tiring."

[weenwoon]

The revelation is unexpected. Hythlodaeus's cheeks grow a little pink; to think that the ever-capable Hades would imitate him...

He turns his hand, gently catching Hades's fingers between his own.

"Were it not a burden on you, I would have liked to see your impression of me," he says with a smile to signify that it's not a serious request. He is indeed curious to see that, but the last thing Hythlodaeus wants is to make Hades remember the hardships of his long millennia of solitude.

"I never thought of holding the seat together... but mayhap that would have been the right solution. I wonder if the Convocation would have allowed that."

[emet_sulk]

"Mm. We'll never know now." He takes a sip of wine and snuggles further against his friend with a sigh. "It doesn't matter. Keep me company tonight, Hythlodaeus. I demand it."

One day maybe he'll show Hythlodaeus something of how he acted for others. But putting on that mask requires energy and right now that energy is wholly devoted to finishing this very good bottle of wine.

[weenwoon]

Hythlodaeus chuckles, pressing closer against his friend in turn and taking a sip of his own wine.

"And what kind of company you would like to have tonight, hmm?~"

His voice is a little teasing; he has a good idea of what the answer will be, but it's more fun to make Hades say it.

[emet_sulk]

Although he had set up this whole date, Hades still flushes before answering.

"I-intimate company...I was hoping..." he mumbles. "I know we agreed back when we were younger that our affection was platonic but..."

He trails off, embarrassed. Visiting the Naughtilust simply isn't the same but he can't make himself say that.

[weenwoon]

Oh-oh, Hythlodaeus senses A Weakness. How is he supposed not to pounce on that?

"Buuut?~"

He leans in a little closer, his hold on Hades's waist tightening slightly. Just to show that Hades is not getting away without answering.

[emet_sulk]

Hades flushes and pointedly maintains an averted gaze.

"I... I'm still fond of you. That's all I mean. And I've not found many with whom I can be...entirely comfortable with," he mumbles.

[weenwoon]

Despite his teasing, Hythlodaeus can't help blushing a little as well. Though usually he, too, would call his affection for Hades fondness, learning that his friend has waded through twelve millennia of despair to bring him back... he can't be unaffected by such devotion.

The mention of being comfortable, though, sends his thoughts down a slightly different track.

"'Tis a pity you cannot freely transform here."

What he's thinking is that Hades would be happier in his own body, not a borrowed one. What it sounds like, though...

[emet_sulk]

He nearly chokes on his wine. "Wh-what is that supposed to mean?" he asks, coughing. "I'm not-- You-- What?!"

Help, he's dying.

[weenwoon]

Hythlodaeus also ends up choking on his wine - but in his case it's first out of surprise at Hades's outburst, and then because of his own laughter. What's amusing is both Hades's reaction, and the fact that he apparently--did he really not know?

"W-Well," he manages after getting his breath back and wiping the tears out of his eyes (though he's still grinning widely), "I have always enjoyed seeing you transform. Your true form is quite handsome."