museboxofmuses | (no subject)

Hades would be offended by his lackluster reply if circumstances had been different.

"Yes, and I'm the Architect. It's perfect." He seductively changed how his legs were crossed before placing a hand at the waistband of his trousers. He let his thumb dip below, obscuring it from view as he looked up to Prometheus.

"You'd like to see it, I hope," he said, leaning back on his other arm.

Hades had to remind himself to be patient. They had hardly been undressed around each other in a mood-befoulingly long time.

Okay, Prometheus couldn't help but giggle a little at Hades's shameless confidence. It broke the ice, what lingering tension he had been carrying easing out of his shoulders. He only had to look, if he wanted, and if that was what all they did, that was fine also, he told himself. There was no pressure to do anything.

No pressure.

"Sure," he said, his gaze lingering on Hades's hand before he lifted it back up to his face. He hesitated, but then decided to just go for it. Hades might appreciate him being more forward in this context, "But, uh, can you show me while lying down on the bed? I can... take your trousers off to look."

His pulse was definitely spiking now, but it was very firmly in anticipation now. Oh, nerves was tangled up in there too, but it wasn't the bad kind, anymore.

Hades smiled at that. Got you! Hades toed his shoes off before pulling his legs onto the bed. Hades was excited before, but now his pulse was positively thrumming. He unclasped his suspenders and set them aside on the bed as he began to make himself properly comfortable. Worst case scenario, Hades would just take a nap.

“Well? I’m waiting,” he said with a sultry tone. He spread his legs just so and propped himself up so he could watch Prometheus’ reaction. The man was no spring chicken... but he hadn’t even seen one before outside of a book or a model, had he?

Prometheus's experience with vaginas were firmly in the academic side of things - and, for a brief period of time, personal when he was still a child and it was a thing that was simply part of his body, when he was still in that stage of self-discovery.

He climbed onto the bed once Hades was comfortable, settling between his spread knees.

"You're so impatient," he chided playfully, feeling a bit of his old self bubbling up as he leaned in, thumbing at the button on the front of Hades's trousers before popping it undone. This was something he had done countless times, over and over, yet, something about it felt like it was the first time all over again. He hooked his fingers into the waistband, carefully tugging just the trousers down, noting the immediate difference in both underwear and how said underwear... appeared.

It's true that ordinarily by now he would have a very obvious erection, and that it was conspicuously empty. It was still a similar style of underwear, but for someone who wanted his clothes to fit just-so he wore something a little different. Still very masculine with some length in the leg... But no button fly or anything of the sort.

"Impatient? I've been so patient," he said, shifting a bit to let the trousers come down easily.

In a sense, it would be their first time. Especially with how long it had been. Hades bit his lip as he felt the drop of wetness at his arousal. He wasn't used to that yet, at all.

"Yes, yes," Prometheus crooned, unable to stop himself from sounding teasingly patronising, "So patient you deserve a medal for it."

He discarded Hades's trousers over the edge of the bed, ignoring the quiet 'thmp' of them hitting the floor as he focused on Hades's underwear. It looked different, and he experimentally stroked his fingers over the front of them, feeling the difference with a thin layer of fabric between them. It was more curious than intentionally sexy, pressing his index finger against what felt like a natural dip, dampness already seeping through.

Well, there's the entrance, already feeling a bit wet.

Despite himself, he started to feel a little excited himself. His loose shorts did nothing to hide that, but he ignored it even if he did feel weirdly self-conscious about it. The last time he had an orgasm was... fuck. Before he went to Xerora. Unless Hades was involved in some way, his sexual appetite was non-existent, which meant he hadn't jerked off during this very prolonged dry spell. It hadn't bothered him before, but now...

He hooked his fingers into the underwear, tugging them off, his gaze fixated on what lay beneath.

Hades made an irritated little sound, but he was earnestly excited that Prometheus was into this enough to tease him.

"You joke, but I think I do," he said, hands over the buttons of his shirt. He made no particular move, but he figured he could take it off by the time Prometheus was really touching him.

Hades made a couple of soft gasps feeling those familiar hands do unfamiliar things to him.

Hades followed Prometheus' gaze down himself, his cheeks warming. He had some trimmed white hair above all of it, a rather prominent clitoris (Hades figured he'd make this easier for both of them), and the folds already slick with his excitement. It was all very neat-looking, in its own way. Everything was so... symmetrical and tucked neatly away.

"Well?"

Prometheus tilted his head a fraction, his gaze heavy-lidded as he simply took it in. He liked how Hades decided to make the clitoris a bit obvious. Not that he thought he'd fumble trying to identify it, but it made things easier.

"You're wet already," he said, his soul warm with sultry mischief as he thumbed those white curls just above the clit, trying to figure out his angle of attack. While he did have one of these thousands of years ago, he had been far too young for any sexual experimentation with it. Of course, he wasn't totally clueless. He sort of knew how to go around this. Kind of.

"Just so you know, I have no idea what I'm doing," he said frankly, letting his thumb drift lower. Tentatively, he started to rub a little, tight circle over the clit, his gaze lifting to Hades's face to watch his reaction.

His cock was painfully hard at this point, because of course his imagination started leaping ahead, imagining fucking into him, how that would feel and, stars, it really had been too long because even just imagining it made his breathing a little short, a faint flush to his cheeks as a heat clenched low and tight in his belly.

If he made a mess in his shorts just from this, he was going to die of mortification, seriously.

"And you're hard already," Hades said with a smile. The warmth of his soul, send his pulse quickening. He wasn't sure how this was all going to go down when he came over, after all.

Hades' eyes closed for a moment, breathing out through his nose when he felt Prometheus' fingers begin to touch him.

"That's fine," Hades said, his golden eyes reopening again to look at him hungrily. He noted the erection, of course. It had been so long since he'd had it in hand. The thought of that only made him wetter, feeling himself open up a bit, the air hitting some new parts...

"All you really need to do is put yourself in here," he said airily, deciding to spread himself lewdly with one hand for Prometheus' benefit.

Prometheus looked a little surprised like that, wondering if it was that easy. Shouldn't he... work him a bit? Or...? Well, Hades did seem wet and aroused enough, and it'd been so long he doubted either of them were in the mood for their usual games of long foreplay. He certainly wasn't.

"Just put myself in there. That easy, huh?" he said, trying for glib but sounding a little nervous despite himself. He was genuinely worried he'd cum the second he'd put himself in there.

But, there was no way to resist. Now with Hades spreading his legs like that, spreading himself like that. He couldn't help but stare, and slowly he pushed his shorts down - kicked them off entirely, actually, his heart thumping hard against his ribs. Precum was already beading the tip of his cock, and he let his fingers skim over the insides of Hades's thighs, nudging them a little wider as he settled himself between them.

Okay.

He shifted his weight forwards, pressing the tip of his cock against Hades's entrance. It yielded easily enough, hot and wet and already making him breathless as he eased himself in with a rough, overwhelmed noise. His belly clenched hard, his muscles tensing in an effort to stave off the sharp spike of pleasure that very nearly undid him at just, feeling all that stimulation in one overdue go.

Stars, Hades was right. He really did make this perfect. It felt like the whole thing was made just for his fucking cock.

Oh, but Hades did make it just for him. It was tight and hot, sized just so that in turn, Prometheus felt amazing. Hades had wired all the nerves all very carefully, finding that perhaps the clitoris was redundant now. He would have to revise, perhaps, noting how he tightened around Prometheus' cock. He moaned against his crooked elbow, a leg coming up around Prometheus' waist.

"That's right... Just that easy," Hades muffled himself into his arm, rolling his hips as he felt so full and satisfied just like this. "I made it so that whatever makes you feel best will make me feel best, too," he said as a deep blush darkened over his features.

It had been so, so long. He'd masturbated a few times in the time since they'd fucked, but it had been just... base and animal, quick and thoughtless. This was so much better, the excitement of the novelty driving him forward.

"I-It feels really best right now," Prometheus said a bit stupidly, not even caring that sentence made no grammatical sense. There was the faintest cramp of orgasm ghosting along his nerves, making him tremble from the effort of holding back. He didn't bother trying to hide it either, his soul radiating the overwhelming, primal sensation for Hades to soak up as he slowly adjusted to being buried deep inside him.

Once he was semi-sure he wasn't going to blow his load the second he moved, he started to clumsily thrust, one hand gripping Hades's hip, fingers pressing hard into the skin as his pace quickened, instinct overriding nerves almost instantly.

"Oh, fucking hell," he groaned, shifting his weight even more forwards, better leverage, angle, faintly aware that he was fucking Hades with all the grace of a desperately rutting animal but not really giving a shit at that moment. He was on the edge. Then he was over that edge, his control slipping so spectacularly he was cumming hard into Hades before he realised, thrusts not slowing in the slightest as he rode it out, panting Hades's name over and over.

Hades wasn’t coming, but he was still enjoying watching Prometheus lose himself hard and it did feel really good. He placed a hand on the back of Prometheus’ neck, feeling the sweat there, and gripping the hair as he tried to imprint this on his memory. And then, with the other hand, he snapped his fingers.

And untied Prometheus’ tubes.

Probably a very rude time to do it, but hey. He’d just run the trial with great success so...

Prometheus's started to slow as his orgasm waned, panting heavily as he gave one last thrust into Hades and staying there. It was hot and wet, felt too fantastic to ease out of there just yet, dazedly blinking down at Hades. It was like... a great tension he hadn't known he'd been struggling under had just been snapped free, making him feel pleasantly all loose and relaxed. He hadn't realised how wound up he'd been until now.

Hades gripped the back of his neck, fingers curled into his hair, and Prometheus felt an abrupt surge of affection he didn't bother to hide - and some... embarrassment. That had been way too quick, hadn't it? What, barely a minute? Ah, that'd been way too quick.

Prometheus shifted his weight a little, biting his bottom lip when the movement jostled him inside Hades, and opened his mouth to apologise-

"Erk!"

-only to let out a very loud squeak when Hades snapped his fingers and untied his damn tubes. It was like a static shock, more startling than actually painful, and his legs reflexively tried to squeeze shut, except, he was still buried balls deep in Hades (which he was deeply regretting now), so he couldn't and instead just did a very weird sort of cringing wriggle that made the mattress bounce a little under them.

"H-H-Hades!" he blustered, his voice a little higher pitched and his face a bright shade of red, "What the hell!"

“Nothing’s free,” he said with a quirk of his lips. “I’m joking. But whether or not you recognize it, I think it’s alright to start trying for a child. Or at least just... let it be possible.” How Hades to be speaking pragmatically while his lover was fully inside of him, unable to escape easily.

“There’s a lot of change to be had, so... I figure we may as well get it all done at once.” Hades was tired of waiting, of wading in this murky, depressing, little pond. He had done his part to the world, and now he wanted some rest. Comparatively. He knew child rearing was no easy task. Neither he nor Prometheus had been easy as kids.

“I know this is a lot of pressure, but we can go slowly,” Hades brought his snapping hand in to run circles on Prometheus’ chest. “And if you need to fuck like that again to get it out of your system, so be it.”

Prometheus's expression went from comically offended to cautious as Hades spoke, his cheeks pink from the flush of afterglow.

"...I think I want to take it slow," he said after a bit of a pause, trying to parse how he felt about this whole moment. He rocked his hips a fraction, wincing slightly at the dull ache in his balls from Hades's impromptu reverse vasectomy, and lowered himself so he was resting on his elbows, braced on either side of Hades, their faces close enough to kiss.

"I just got overexcited before, and... that was the first time since, y'know..." he mumbled, his gaze skittering somewhere to the side, avoiding Hades's face. He could feel his nerves picking up again - not as panic inducing, but enough to make him aware that from this moment on, sex with Hades would result in... another change. A good change, but a scary one, and.

Prometheus really needed to stop cowering from change.

"And I've," he paused, feeling his courage falter a little, because he was going to say something dumb and kind of pathetic all at once, and he was briefly worried Hades would get put off by it. He peeked up at his lover almost shyly, nervously fidgeting with a lock of Hades's pale hair.

"I, um, missed you a lot. I-I know we saw each other a lot, but, I mean, like this. Where, where I'm not..." Freaking out over intimate contact, crazy, irrational, "Where we're like this again. I missed that, and want to- to figure it out again. Slowly. If that... even makes sense..."

“Mm, I do know,” he leaned up ever so slightly to press a kiss to Prometheus’ lips in answer to his wanting to take it slow. Prometheus was also stupid, of course, because Hades still had an asshole. He’d probably have to remind him of that, in time. Hades felt the nervousness bubble up from Prometheus’ soul and felt it in his movements.

“I missed you, too. You know, we missed renewing our vows...” they had missed a lot of things. A lot of living passed them by in their year of difficult healing. Hades gave Prometheus a squeeze with his legs. Hades picked a loose hair from Prometheus’ forehead, missed from the earlier haircut.

“Of course we can figure it out... I’m not going to change my body around often, but I can do it for you. I love you, you know,” he said, golden eyes glancing off.

Prometheus slowly relaxed as Hades spoke, some of his wariness easing from his expression. He wasn't sure what he'd expected, but he was internally relieved that they both seemed to be on the same page with this. Things had changed so drastically, the both of them had, and they had tiptoed around each other, ignoring the very oppressive elephant in the room, that Prometheus had been worried he'd find out that they...

He didn't know. Before Xerora, he'd been so confident that he and Hades had been all but made for each other. One soul in two bodies. But with Zodiark, and the Doom, and Prometheus's soul cracking, he felt like they were now two souls in two bodies. It was an incredibly lonely feeling. It was his own fault, though, because he was stupid and terrified and shut even Hades out on most days, and he could never coherently articulate it.

"I know," Prometheus murmured, curling a lock of Hades's hair around his finger, rubbing his thumb over it. The only reason Hades would have put up with something as troublesome as him was because he loved him, even if nowadays Prometheus wondered how the hell he managed that considering he was probably the most annoyingly unpredictable risk existing in Amaurot right now.

"I love you too," he said, feeling some pressure ease off his chest at being able to say that still, "More than anything, I love you. Well," he mustered a smile, "Hyth's a close second, but still..."

Prometheus stopped fiddling with Hades's hair, his thumb stroking the sharp line of his lover's cheek.

"We should renew our vows," he said, a bit softer, slightly uncertain, "If, you still want to. I mean."

"What sort of idiot do you take me for?" he asked, with fondness in his voice. "I'm not so foolish to remind someone of something only to shun it. Well, only for Lahabrea," he said, breathing out slowly and watching Prometheus' hand on his jaw.

"So let's renew our vows. You know, as soon as I quit the convocation," he said, his expression taking on its often mischievous, smarmy look. "Which... Well. Whenever they open my resignation letter, I suppose."

No, Hades would not be doing that in person. That sounded entirely too exhausting. They would want... Entirely too much. An exit interview, a rebuttal, a plea... Ugh, it sounded horrible. Certainly there was someone else who could do it all. And if not? Perhaps they would have to wait five hundred years for a child to properly mature... But so what?

Hades, too, felt the split, the pull-away from Prometheus. The most serious issue in the world, literally— how to solve it all, and they came down on different sides. It did not make it a bit better that Hades was right. Except that his solution carried hope that their own consciousnesses would be allowed to heal. God, how bleak.

"I wouldn't have made you a womb if I was thinking of dashing out the door," he said blithely. "And speaking of doors... I did tell you that I'll be moving in, right? You have such ugly doors."

Prometheus laughed quietly at the thought of the Convocation starting their next meeting opening Hades's resignation letter when the man wasn't there - but it got him thinking. If Hades was quitting the Convocation, then what point was there for Prometheus to try getting back on it. Really, he only stayed in the past because Hades had been there, had tried his hardest to get better now because Hades was there...

It was a big step. A big personal change he'd make for himself. And, well, what would he do with himself if he quit? He joined the Convocation young, too young, really, so his entire Self had been shaped around being the Fourteenth. He'd have to rediscover himself all over again, which... probably wasn't a bad thing? He'd have to do that anyway, considering how much his soul was in flux...

He pushed aside all thoughts about that. He can dwell on it later. For now...

"Don't insult my doors. They're lovely," he mock-huffed, shifting his weight again. Buried deep in Hades as he was, well, he wasn't immune to the sensation of it. Before, though, the ache in his balls had curbed his enthusiasm somewhat, an ache that had pretty much faded now (he always recovered fast). The tight, wet heat squeezing around his cock was slowly stiffening it back up.

"But if you hate them that much, we can change them when we baby-proof this place," he murmured, his hips rocking very minutely and gently, "I mean, we'd have to. My home's a death trap."

Zodiark was a touchy subject, so Hades decided not to bring it up. Even if mentally there was the chorus of "And if we lived in my place, Zodiark could protect our children. And my condo isn't a death trap—" But he must pick his battles. It's what he had to do, being in love with the most difficult man in Amaurot.

"With my time off, I think I'll double my naps. I've hardly ever doubled my intended productivity, so I look forward to it." The tone in his voice was remarkably close to dead-fucking-serious.

"I feel like you specifically Created your doors as an Affront to Aesthetics," Hades said. Was he recollecting a specific and true memory? Perhaps.

"Perhaps I should just add-on to the side of the building. There's so many violations of physics in here... We almost may as well torch it to the ground and try again..."

Hades idly squeezed his erection with his cunt.

Prometheus did sort of vaguely remember designing his home to be as unappealing as possible, to deter any would be visitors. He also violated the laws of physics to maximise as much space as he could, since the Administration Bureau kept rejecting his requests to expand his property. So instead he folded space over and... hm. Maybe Hades was right. Maybe he should knock it down and start over.

"I mean, I wouldn't be against the Architect designing me a new house, so if you want to burn it down, fine," Prometheus said a mite teasingly, letting out a breathless grunt when Hades tightened around him. His pupils dilated, eyes heavy-lidded, his fingers gently running along the curve of Hades's jaw as his gaze started to focus on his mouth.

"We can build it together," he murmured distractedly, leaning in to kiss Hades on the corner of his mouth, his other hand idly trailing down along Hades's ribs, down towards his hip.

“Thinking about it, I’m not sure this place would burn, it breaks so many laws of physics. I might have to just absorb the aether.” Like he was containing a dangerous entity. Which it kind of was.

“To build something with you... That sounds nice,” Hades said, making a soft noise as he felt Prometheus’ hand move to his hip. “As long as I get the last day on aesthetics. You know.. I’ve always wondered why you don’t have an aviary.” Hades had that look in his eye, betraying that he was already constructing it in his mind.

“You can start thrusting again if you like,” Hades said, low key wondering if he could trick him into a follow through.

Edited 2019-10-27 00:08 (UTC)

Well, Prometheus never really had an aviary because his workplace had been such a temperamental, reality-warping monstrosity, that he daren't risk it. But, since his explosive, dangerous days of experimenting with combat-spells were far behind him, he supposed he could have one...

The idea was so lovely, it distracted him briefly, mindlessly nuzzling the underside of Hades's jaw until he was invited to, ah, continue. Right, he was... very much balls deep in someone here.

"Mm, sure..." Prometheus made a low, purring noise, and started rocking into Hades again. It felt nice, his lower back arching a fraction as he gripped Hades's hip firmly, tilting it just so until he hit an angle that felt right. Unlike before, where he'd been rough and desperate, his movements were slow and lazy. He felt too relaxed, too loose-limbed from his earlier, pent-up orgasm, to go at it all passionate-like so soon.

Affection bubbled up in him, warm and fizzing and making every mote in his soul hum in contentment, far sweeter than any primal orgasm could be. His soul opened up, a little tentatively, inviting Hades to delve deep if he wanted, blurring the lines between physical and spiritual sex slightly but...

He wanted it. He was nervous too - because what if he remembered Xerora and panicked? What if Hades hit upon the Doom shrapnel and it ruined the mood for them both? - but also, he missed Hades, and he meant it when he said he wanted them to rediscover each other again. He missed Hades like he missed a severed limb. He just... wanted him again. Body and soul.

Hades needed no further invitation. Prometheus opened a bit, and Hades moved in boldly. He hit upon the cracks, smoothing himself over him entirely, pressing himself into the crevices like glaze over a cake.

Now that the movements were lazy, Hades found himself moving in tandem. He put his hands on Prometheus’ back, gripping him closer. Oh, and he was hitting all the perfect spots, making electricity shoot up his spine and down his legs. He noted, idly, that he hadn’t bothered to morph out his prostate, so he was having quite a lot of enjoyment.

“Oh, that’s good,” he crooned into his ear. Having this set of genitals was entirely new to him, of course. Should he be doing something with it? He tried, but fluff himself just tightening involuntarily.

Prometheus made a tiny noise when Hades's soul settled into his. There was that instinctive flinch, his soul tensing without thinking - but it lasted for only half a heartbeat, relaxing as Hades's soul curled around him, soothing the constant, prickling burn of the Doom shrapnel stuck deep in the cracks. There was no pain, and Prometheus found himself shakily exhaling a breath he didn't know he'd been holding in.

Like this, he could feel an echo of the pleasure Hades was feeling, a vivid feedback loop that had his toes curling and his nerves settling. It was... comfortable, this slow, lazy rhythm, their souls curled into each other, pushing and pulling - Prometheus unconsciously sped the pace up a bit, especially when Hades started to clench around him.

"Feels good," Prometheus said breathlessly, half-listening to Hades's crooning in favour of nuzzling the crook of his friend's neck. He was clinging to him tight, as close as they could be while still having enough leverage to fuck properly, realising just how fucking touch-starved him and his soul was. He wanted to just bury himself in the comforting, safe boundaries of Hades, stay there, soak him all up - it was almost getting to be overwhelming, that push-pull between physical pleasure and Hades's soul resonating with his - but Prometheus wanted it like that. It made his mind go blissfully blank.

"Hades..." he groaned, mindlessly pawing at Hades's hip, "Can you- go in deeper? I want..."

Hades pushed in, pressing down Prometheus’ walls from the inside and became his new container. They resonated, and Hades gasped and grabbed at the hair at Prometheus’ nape. Now they were truly having as much sex as possible in that moment, and it was pushing Hades over the edge. His legs came up, gripping Prometheus’ hops in place as he rolled against him.

Every bit of his length was pressed inside of him, and just exactly so. His heart pounded as he gasped, his stomach muscles tightening, his back arching, and his head thrown back so violently and suddenly.

“Oh, Prometheus...!” he cried as he came, shuttering beneath his lover. Hades was slicked with sweat, his eyes half open and unfocused.

Hades clutched at him so tightly Prometheus could barely move, but that was fine, because every bit of them were so firmly entwined together he kind of forgot how to move anyways. All he knew was hadeshadeshades and the hot flush of pleasure and ecstasy and completion - and he didn't know if it was him, or Hades, or both, stuck in a pleasurable feedback loop, but it was good and Prometheus made a very embarrassing, breathless grunting noise when Hades clenched hard and-

He came - both physically and soul-wise, his vision blooming white and warm fuzzy colours, burying his face into the crook of Hades's neck as he gasped his name over and over. His mind just melted - too much, in one go. Physical- reward hormones, reaction, physical orgasm, mixed with the straight up dopamine shot from soul harmonising, it was- so much. He formulate a thought beyond that. So much. So much.

He finally came down from his little high, though, in small bits and pieces, panting into Hades's shoulder as he held him tight and close. With a clumsy wriggle of his hips, he managed to slip out of Hades, where it felt more than a little wet and warm.

"Good," he mumbled, stupidly, gently easing them both to lie on their sides instead, still holding Hades close, nuzzling his throat, his shoulder, "Needed that."

“Mm, I thought so,” Hades replied, rubbing Prometheus’ scalp with the arm not pinned between them. Idly, he thought that it would be too hopeful, and perhaps a bit unfair to Prometheus if this took seed. Perhaps he had been hasty... and he wanted more of just this. Oh well, can’t go tying and untying Prometheus’ tubes based on his mood. As funny as that might be.

Hades enjoyed his own afterglow, though resisting the nap that threatened to take him. “I did too, of course,” he said, breathing in Prometheus’ scent. “Hmm... I suppose I’ll move in tonight.”

"Mm...?"

Oh, right. Yeah. Hades was moving in. He forgot.

Initially, Prometheus hadn't been overly keen about that. It would be a major disruption to the comfortable routine he had uneasily settled into - but, maybe it was the afterglow, but it didn't seem like such a bad idea now. It might be a bit awkward - they always liked their own space to retreat to - and, some things would need working out...

...

He'll think on it later.

"Not gonna burn down my house and remake it first?" he asked drowsily. His soul felt very warm puddle-y, right now. He could feel the discomforting needle like prickle of the doom shrapnel, though, but he easily ignored it. His soul always felt hypersensitive after an orgasm, so he was just more aware of the unwanted intrusion than usual.

“Too tired to,” Hades said with a sigh. “I’d planned on it, but I think I’ll save it for when I’m feeling testy with you,” he said, and it was hard to tell if he was joking. With his soul still so deeply intertwined, he could feel the prick of the Doom shrapnel as well.

“I wonder what they’ll do without us, at the convocation,” Hades mused aloud. One by one, the members had all taken strides to make their own children... Zodiark had encouraged it, and everyone agreed that it was too lonely. Even for a curmudgeon like Hades.

That was the question, wasn't it?

"I dunno," Prometheus sighed, leaning away enough so that he wasn't talking directly into Hades's neck. He idly tugged at a sweat-damp lock of Hades's hair, playing with it by wrapping it gently around his finger.

"I don't think they'll be what they used to be, anyways," he admitted after a pause, his tone slightly cautious. Even skirting the topic of Zodiark tended to cause tension between them, "Since, we're under 'new management' and all. The role of 'Convocation' might change into something else and... yeah."

It left Prometheus feeling unsettled, thinking about a different future. He didn't like it. It was too uncertain and strange, and... he didn't know. Normally he liked new, and exciting things, but this was too much new, much too involuntary, to get much excitement about it.

Hades could feel Prometheus trying not to get into it, and even if he largely disagreed, he respected that he was merely coming from a place of unease. He sighed, and then shot Prometheus a smirk. "Maybe they'll actually get some work done. Especially since I left a recommendation for Hythlodaeus to take my place."

Hades closed his eyes as he felt Prometheus play with his hair. "Nothing... Can really go back to what it was, you know. I think we took it for granted, being allowed to only change when we wanted to... Nature lives by nature's rules, but we stood somewhere outside of that, hadn't we?"

Hades rubbed his back, and then hoisted himself up out of bed. There was still much to do, unfortunately.

Prometheus couldn't imagine Hythlodaeus leaving the Convocation unscathed if he got accepted into their midst (if Hyth even accepted, since it was widely known he had initially refused the title of Emet-Selch when it had been offered to him). Then again, that might be what they needed, Hythlodaeus's brand of mischief, shaking things up...

He didn't comment on Hades's thoughtful insight, though. It was what he'd been saying in the days leading up to the Doom - how they had sat outside the flow of the Lifestream for too long, how this was an inevitability they simply had to accept - but he didn't feel very vindicated about being proven right. If anything, he'd hoped to be proven wrong in this, at least.

He rolled onto his back when Hades got up, his gaze flicking down to see that the insides of Hades's thighs were, well, more than a little messy. He felt his face warm a little, glancing away as he tried not to think about how desperate he must've looked and felt to Hades, fucking him that enthusiastically with barely any stimulation whatsoever...

"Um," he started, "You wanna shower together?"

Hades bit his lip. There were conversational pitfalls everywhere, it they were both feeling amicable enough to let these things slip. It would come to a head eventually, and he wondered if it would be worse to wait to tell him. ...It would. And he was in good spirits... so. That meant he could either annihilate a perfectly good evening or be able to deliver difficult news without Prometheus fell apart.

Unfortunately, he had spent so long pondering this that it took him a moment to hear Prometheus. “Hm? Oh. Right. We should, shouldn’t we?” Hades walked over to the bathroom and cautiously opened the door. Never knew when the contents of the house might shift, especially with Prometheus’ poor control over the structure. Worse, Hades was such a powerful mage that Zodiark was unable to fully yoke his powers. Hades Created like he breathed— he was so natural at it and his mistakes so infrequent that he would forget that he could shift reality in inconvenient ways.

This time, as he opened the door, a birds flew out, forcing him to duck as they flitted around the room.

Prometheus didn't have much time to feel put out about Hades delayed, distracted reply on account of his bedroom door deciding to spit out a flock of brightly coloured bird when Hades opened it. His house must've linked to the ornithology lab in the Acadaemia again.

"Oh, come on! I fixed that problem a century ago!" He groaned, sitting up. He found it hard to be truly annoyed, though, especially when a few birds landed on the bed next to him, hopping onto his legs or shoulders. He always did attract birds without trying - animals in general, really, and they all tended to instantly love him.

Probably a Lifestream thing.

"But you guys are cute, though..." he crooned, gently stroking one handsome bird perched on his thigh, smiling when it affectionately nibbled on his finger. Ah. Birds. They were perfect. How he loved them, these brilliant little things... "Hades, aren't they cute?"

Hades smiled at them, reaching over to let one nibble his finger. “I don’t think they would appreciate it if we used the flamingo pond to bathe... Again.” Even if it was the middle of the night and they should not have had any chance of getting found. Turns out they had recently added guards after the Xerora tourist incident.

“How long before someone noticed that they’re gone?” Hades tiredly started looking for his clothes, gave up, and snapped something onto his body. It didn’t match. Now? Was now the time to tell him? Maybe he should flip a coin. Hades’ expressive nature couldn’t contain his frown. Stupid! Make a choice or it won’t be yours to make! Tell him or don’t! Hades looked at Prom, all with love in his eyes and joy on his features.

“Hey... so. I have a caveat about this whole...thing. That you should probably know,” Hades let one of the birds land on him. “Since a soul could take.”

Prometheus glanced over at Hades, his happy expression tempering into something more guarded. He could feel the uncertainty and wariness bubbling up in Hades, like it usually did before he dropped a very unpleasant bombshell. Prometheus felt steady enough to deal with a nasty surprise right now though... right?

"What caveat is that?" He asked, mentally running through a list of possibilities. If it was regarding their kids, and this level of caution from Hades, the answer was already glaring him in the face. He felt his soul clench at the idea of it, like a steel trap swinging mostly shut, sharp teeth and all.

“Since I’ll be the carrier... The child may become tempered in the womb,” he didn’t know if Prometheus knew this already. It was likely that he didn’t. It’s not like he went out all that much. All the children stayed close to Zodiark’s protection... and of course he tempered them.

“I’m not entirely sure that Zodiark can control it either,” Hades said, expression drawn with his arms folded. “So... I suppose you should cope with that possibility sooner than later.”

And of course, were someone to ask that if Zodiark changed him... he was never entirely be sure. Of course he knew that they all became tempered, but that was by design, not flaw. What good would a god be that fell out of favor or acted against its peoples’ wishes and best interest?

“Even if they aren’t...” it’s a matter of time, he didn’t say.

Prometheus didn't immediately respond. His soul had completely shut Hades off, though, physically looking away from him as he focused on the birds in his lap instead. That made it less stressful to think about.

The thing was, he already knew that. He was aware the children would be tempered, and that it was an ugly necessity. He was painfully aware that his own immunity to Terminus wasn't easily replicated, because it was a culmination of his own soul modifications and other mysterious circumstances.

He knew all that.

Didn't make it easier to accept, though. The idea, the thought, of tempering, made him feel physically ill. And. Their children being that...

But, Prometheus was trying his best to be less crazy and irrational. So. Right. He wasn't happy about it, at all, but it was a thing. Fine.

"Okay," he said, managing to sound calm - too calm, maybe. His tone sounded distant, even to himself, "I understand. I don't have a choice in the matter anyways, so I have to accept it."