[A.] P H E L I O N

prepared to poke at him until his offer is accepted, he practically beams at the hesitant acceptance. with a clap of his hands, he swings his legs off the bed. “ hell yeah, kitten. that’s the spirit. c'mon, let’s hop in together so we can leave. it’s got two heads. ”

yaketsu pats at the man’s thigh, animated, and sets off for the bathroom door. sure, the structure of the place is the same as the hotel, but his illusory abilities create a far grander interior, matching the bedroom. marble floors, an oversized glass encased shower, grand, backlit mirrors, the works. he turns on the separate heads and doubles back, making sure aster intends on following.

“ ya—c'mon. don’t worry, i won’t attack you in the shower. ” a chuckle follows, laced with mockingly sinister intent. fortunately for aster, he loves steak, maybe even more than sex.

but, ever the trooper, astraeus forced himself to soldier on as he rolled onto his side and eased himself up and onto the edge of the bed to find his footing. it was wise he was taking it slow, because damn, his ass really did ache! unlike a human, he'd bounce back quickly enough and luckily not suffer any long-term issues from a dick that big, but damn.

he felt sorry for any human this man fucked.

' you better not, ' he warned as he stepped after him, walking at a ginger, cautious pace to not aggravate his backside more than necessary. he doesn't need to be told to hop on into the shower--in fact, he squeezed past yaketsu just to be able to go in first.

the moment the hot spray hit his sweaty, aching body, he groaned in relief, standing directly under the spray of one of the shower heads. typically, he'd love a round of shower sex, but right now, he was in his own world, basking in the modern glory of heated water tanks.

his head tilts. “but gambling is part of the game, and you have better control than i expected.” he makes a face, as if impressed with his restraint and seals his wound. “guess that means your ass is gonna have to heal the old way.” or maybe he just dodged a bullet, who knows. for now, yaketsu backs off, but he doesn’t leave aster’s immediate space. 

“what type of meat d’ya like? i could go for something too now that i think about it.” an idea brightens black eyes. “oi, the garden palace is offering an all-you-can eat steak dinner. it’s at their restaurant called, uh…” his gaze lifts toward the ceiling, trying to remember. 

picking and choosing battles is a wise trait to have, after all.

a beat passed, aster regained control of himself, and he sighed and thumped back against the bed, paying no mind to yaketsu's proximity on purpose.

' meat? ' expecting to be booted out after the remark upon his ass having to take the long road to healing, he lolled his head to the side to peek at yaketsu from where he lay. ' uh, any meat, frankly, but why-- '

he stopped when yaketsu carried on explaining, and could not help the subtle widening of his eyes as he was so blatantly invited on a dinner date. or was it just... a dinner outing? a platonic dinner between two men who had just finished having intense, heated sex?

heart speeding up, in his embarrassment to his reaction, he quickly looked away.

and while the mention of him taking his soul should be terrifying, beck finds himself more curious than anything. “i mean, if you think i’d be a danger to myself and others, wouldn’t it be better to just take me out? why isn’t it your place?”

making him live with this cursed mind is worse, much worse. but if he’s going to be a better person, he should try, right? and maybe he should make it easier, or more fun, for aster.

' i'm not supposed to kill humans unless they're really fucking shit up. something about... heavenly karma, or whatever. ' he studied his nails, picking dirt from out beneath them. ' you definitely are not the worst case i've ever seen. a human has to be acting up pretty bad for it to be determined better off for them to be dead. '

man, he should go get his nails done. when was the last time he had a spa day?

aster glanced up, arching a brow at beck's question.

he shouldn't be here. he doesn't deserve to experience this sort of affection when his victims are not here to enjoy this holiday? his eyes darken, leaning back against the booth. how many of them had loved ones? were loved ones? he frowns.

maybe he should visit their memorial. or maybe he should go to jigoku and beg enma to fix everything, to relinquish him of this guilt. when every piece of happiness is tainted with the reality of his sins, how can he even enjoy one second of this life?

the bump on his shoulder snaps him back to the present, lids fluttering. what does he want? "my appetite has soured. i keep thinking about those lives i took in my rage. how they would be celebrating if i had an ounce of self-control. how enma refuses to punish me."

funny, how he used to think first of father's reaction to him acting out of turn. now, he looked to tsurya for his input, especially in this very moment as he felt the shift in tsurya's energy. like a heavy fog choking out the sun, he could see him visibly deflate as his overthinking mind drummed up new scenarios to be depressed over--typical.

' hey. ' tsurya's hands were found to be squeezed in aster's own, albeit first dusted free of any bread crumbs. didn't wanna get tsurya's nice suit all dirty. ' is being all bummed out gonna do anything to repay them back? or is it just gonna leave everybody unhappy? '

the question was rhetorical, and he didn't wait for an answer.

UNPROMPTED !

'both' being the loose term, for he was certain he was eyeing up tsurya dressed to the nines. who could resist side-eyeing a publicly known figure who was one of the finest things to ever come out of japan?

' i don't care how full i am, i could eat that dude in a heartbeat if he tries anything, ' astraeus mumbled, and quietly looked over to tsurya. in his tantrum, his table manners were abhorrent, his behavior unsuitable, and were he with his family, he knew he'd be getting smacked over the head for his insolent behavior.

yet, tsurya was kind, warm, forgiving as he took up his hand and suggested a menu item to calm his anger.

aster sighed and bumped his head against tsurya's shoulder, always inclined to act the part of the feline that he was.

it’s difficult to conceal the distaste in sharpening green eyes, and for a long moment, kagura stares, quiet. sizing him up from his towel-covered crotch to his pretty little exotic face. 

men are so ugly, always wanting a woman to stay in her place, don’t do this, behave, don’t do that. don’t destroy humanity because they don’t deserve it. don’t enslave humanity because they don’t deserve it. if only he knew the talks she was having, the true plans coming together behind guarded doors. honestly, deep in her subconscious, kagura knows what she must do, and like a snake in the soil, she will conceal herself until the precise moment of opportunity presents itself. 

in the meantime, she must keep an a close eye on her enemies. first yaketsu, and now this bastard. can she control him, too? an agreeable smile shapes her lips, eyes softening, as she distances herself from her countenance to formulate a strategy. 

there’s a clear need to manipulate here, but how should she go about it? so far, he hasn’t responded to her body, which is infuriating in itself. does he swing? most men do these days, so should she throw one of her male acquaintances at him? kagura rises from her chair and strides to close the distance, placing a hand on the seat by his head and leaning in. 

she was cute, small, and petite, but reminded him of something poisonous in her innocence. weren't poisonous plants often bright and colorful to announce what venom lurked in their petals and stems? well, it wasn't worth fretting over. not now. he had a hunch that his usual method of killing first, asking later, would be a detriment, and so he perked up with a bright smile and played along. not that it was hard. astraeus was an expert at slacking off.

' well, give me some clothes and i'll think about it. ' aster paused, thinking. ' ... which i will pay you back for. honestly, i probably should have asked what you were planning on having your staff bring back. '