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[weenwoon]

Hythlodaeus

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[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."

[emet_sulk]

The wine stings the back of his throat and his eyes are watering.

"I wasn't aware you meant that s-sexually!"

[weenwoon]

Oh, it's really embarrassing to have it put that way. Hythlodaeus goes red again.

"I didn't-- I mean, no, well--"

"I may have thought of it," he finally manages, in the tones of someone who knows he might be in trouble.

[emet_sulk]

He utters some indecipherable sound again and covers his face with a hand. Hythlodaeus had seen him that way? Seen his true self that way? They may have shared intimate relations before when they were younger but it is one thing to do so in these flesh and blood bodies and quite another to have their truest self regarded that way.

"Well, put it out of your mind because I could easily hurt you in that form," he mumbles.

[weenwoon]

He laughs apologetically, fiddling with his glass. It's not often he is embarrassed, but he is now.

"Well, I would never have expected you to agree... 'twas only an idle fantasy."

He steals a glance at his friend.

"... does it unsettle you?"

[emet_sulk]

He doesn't move or speak for a little while as the question turns over in his mind. Does it unsettle him? Not as much as it probably should. He dimly recalls his friend had unusual tastes - or rather, enjoyed novelty - in ways far more eclectic than Azem ever demonstrated (although sometimes the pair's interests aligned).

"No... It merely caught me off-guard," he eventually replies. "You have seen my truest form before, yet you still say you're fond of me despite that? Even when it reveals parts of me that I-- I'm ashamed of?"

[weenwoon]

He watches Hades from the corner of his eye as the man thinks, but soon enough it's Hythlodaeus's turn to ponder his own answer. He looks down at his glass again, then back up at Hades.

"... We've been close ever since we were children. After all that time, such things... no longer really matter to me. I know you, Hades, and I know that you are still you. Even if you may be ashamed of some aspects of yourself, they won't change how I feel about you."

[emet_sulk]

His hand slowly slips off his face, leaving only his mouth hidden as he stares into his wine. He could probably count the number of times he has transformed since the Sundering on his hands, despite the long years. Even here. His transformations have been purely utilitarian yet rare, still. Doing so for no reason other than to...to show off? Well, if anyone would have the privilege of witnessing that it would be Hythlodaeus.

"...I can't freely change here. It seems it is only possible when I feel intense emotion. I hear there are ways to improve one's abilities - make them easier to access or use - but I don't trust such rumours."

[weenwoon]

He's quiet for a moment as he works out the implications. Could it be...

"... You mean you would be amenable to it?"

[emet_sulk]

"I... Maybe." He's quick to raise a finger before Hythlodaeus' face though. "I'm not saying I will necessarily take you to bed in that form, mind you! But-- this body feels stifling...at times..."

He gulps down another mouthful of wine and grimaces when the alcohol hits too fast.

"If you'd rather not then I-- I understand. I'm only using you to stave off my own loneliness after all..."