1. a colour intermediate between red and blue.

"--gah!" Otis' hands were rushing to try and place the cap back on the bottle. But the thin neck was making that frothy concoction rocket outta the container, right onto his nice sweater!

though...he'd admit that Jake's laugh was cute. It eased his embarrassment, eventually making him break into a soft stream of laughter himself. The cap was clumsily secured, Otis peering at the other. He didn't think he ever heard him sound so happy.

// " I didn't! Honest. "

Thankfully he's prepared a few pouches of sanitized wipes for Otis to use so he wouldn't be too sticky for the rest of this outing. A quick rummage through the car and he wouldn't find the shirt in question. Jake looked back at Otis and frowned.

It wasn't of his interest, though talented in it from innate blood, his passion lay elsewhere. Travelling and soaring the skies, learning the ways of the land and taking notes of the changes. The world was never still, no country or line of river remained the same after so many years. Subtle changes fascinated this beast from the clouds, then and flying was the very essence of a beast with wings. Ueda being his current obsession though but that need aside, he didn't miss it as much - like before, it took years for the changes to happen and Luit had many of them left to live. He didn't mind the wait with a beauty of a mate at his side.

As he consumed the sliced meats, dried and warmed through that morning, he chewed with delight. Salted just right with the rich soup that followed it down. Though bovine was great on its own, raw and with little need for cooking, he was pleased by the salted beef Ueda shown him how to do correctly. For meals like this, it was a delight.

Gaze returns to his love as he listens to their plight, he could understand it a little bit. Being told answers they sought for themselves was a bother, but was it worth the headache of being lost in ones own head? Luit wanted to protest, to make Ueda's needs to be met, he wasn't the solution to be so, but if Ueda wasn't onboard, Luit wouldn't force it to satisfy himself. So, he nodded, lowering his gaze to their meal and being delighted at most of it being eaten. His mate was hungry, just distracted with his works.

"Then I won't look for one… Brother is well. He remains in the territory of another Witch at current. Nesting season is upon us soon, so I think he'll remain until he's ready to move on again. Though he hasn't given me a sign for that, I believe he may stay in that place for a while." It wasn't like they needed letters or conversation in person, a little blip in the consciousness, Vuir's magic always found him and Luit's in return. One of the many strengths of their bloodline and his brother's power. That being said though, Luit did wonder, even if it's a book… would it be of help?

// Full up and satisfied, Ueda pat his belly and sighed with content. He allowed himself a moment to process the fullness before standing to wash up the bowls, collecting anything empty along the way. If there was one thing he was proud of in this den, was the fact he managed a little running water system on demand. His repertoire didn't consist of many flashy powerful spells, rather practical low energy magic like this one.

" Your brother is with a Witch right now? Good for him. "

" Hmm... even you guys have a nesting season huh? I've read about those. Whatever you need for it, you gotta let me help you out. " Whenever bears had their nesting seasons, they ate nearly 90 pounds of food a day. Given the size of Luit, that could easily be ten more times. And birds! During their nesting seasons, they needed plenty of bedding... surely there is a spell out there to help dry out vegetation so Luit could use it quicker.

He was lost in thought again, then Luit pulled him back to the present. "Oh, there is a central library in the big cities. There's one that's about a five days journey on horseback, but I'm sure with you, we'll get there in a couple of hours. "

Surely they could also...

" We can make it a holiday! They've got a large river that empties out into a lake, and many inns set up shop along it. A-And it's really pretty at night too! "

"I know." He finally answered after a long, stubborn silence caused by Louis' search for both composure and answers. He found the more he thought about it though, the less he felt in control of his emotions. And it was so dumb too, wasn't it? To be frustrated about not being hated? He was always so stupid.

And still, CZ sat with him. He provided simple words, but comforted Louis in the fact that he didn't try to assure him he's a good person. He felt like he'd really shatter if that was thrown at him in an attempt to placate. There was a quiet moment as Louis rubbed at his face, trying to will away the tightness that came from strained features, eventually rubbing his throat as it remained taut like he was going to cry. Finally, a breath came.

"...she's gone either way. Oliver is still checking with police and we'll make the announcement to the other workers, but...its done." Louis took a breath that assured that it wasn't out of his mind, was much as he tried to pretend he dismissed it.

"I offered to give her--" Hah. He was already dwelling on it again. He laughed. Fuck. He laughed again.

// Cheng Zhi watched him struggle with himself for a little while longer. The real urge to reach out and pull him out quicker came to him a couple of times, but he forced his instinct away. Not until he was ready for it... otherwise it would cause more harm.

Just as Louis seemed to open up, he clammed up again, and Cheng Zhi's brows furrowed a tinge.

The strangeness of Ueda's life was everything that made this Wyvern love him more. So easy to move around yet always so impulsive in actions when reality was returned to them from outside written texts and tomes to flip back and forth within. Arms seal around their mate with ease, welcoming the warmth and providing more of it, rubbing clawed hands through hair once more, before they took to the table together. Sat back down, the pot boiling still upon stove top at the centre, the elder of two served their beloved with ease.

Eager to feed them, to provide and see them eat a well caught and made meal together… Tails sway, eyes squint in pleasure as he watches and listens, ears twitching ever so slight when he took a bite of something crunchy. His own mouth working through a roll of cabbage and potato, whilst his love rotated to the cheese and breads. The compliment made Luit's day, that's for sure.

"I'll buy it again next time we shop… " He started, moving to stir his bowl to mop up with bread himself. "If it's becoming harder, shall we seek out another mind to aid you?" Luit, though old and with knowledge, wasn't a mage nor wizard nor alchemist in any format. He knew basic and was only graced strong spells from his bloodline and again, age. Speaking of, "If you mind it not, I can ask of my brother to aid you? He enjoys mage craft dearly, libraries filled with tomes of all intellect about spells and theories." Though it sounded wonderful, he was a hater of all things human because of how war-torn and pathetic they are - but maybe, he'll have a change of heart if it's from his brother?

// Ueda smiled as he watched Luit stir his bowl, feeling guilt for making him wait so long. He didn't even finish his food. Perhaps if Ueda quickens the rate he eats, Luit wouldn't be inclined to wait any longer. At the notion of a tutor, Ueda tried to seem indifferent to it. A mind new... that would definitely help, but they would immediately catch on.

Perhaps it was good that Luit was not well-versed in magic.

" No, no... I've got a bit of a complex you know? If someone else tells me the answer, it feels like I haven't done anything at all. " He chewed thoughtfully on his bread, taking in the subtle sourness of the dough, the crunch and smoky aroma from being toasted near a fire.

" And I like your brother. I haven't really gotten a chance to bond with him which is a shame but... how is he? "

we all just suffer, 'cause no one feels that bad  independent multimuse oc please read rules before interacting | heavy trigger warning

　　Head already a little jostled, along with the nose and being pulled, she pinches the bridge of her nose once she still again, brows furrowed as her head loops the tiniest bit. Tipsy still isn't great for being dragged around, and she thinks about hitting Seto before he's able to talk over the new wave of music, and reminds her that she's the one who was worried in the first place.

　　“Oh,” She says, staring up at him, with an expression she'd describe as dumb if she saw it. “Okay... You're acting really weird. It's freaking me out.”

　　Even with the music somehow being quieter than Elliot's loud-ass fucking voice, the confusion and movement has her feeling a little overwhelmed. She rummages in her pockets for a second, and then glances around, before her eyes land on an exit.

// " I... I am? "

This was a surprise to Seto. Sure, there were people he'd never act this vulnerable around. Clients, strangers, people he barely knew... but his inner circle, though rare, had seen this side of him at least once. Perhaps this illusion of closeness he had built with Tem... somewhere along the way, he had begun treating her like she already knew him. Not with any conscious effort to deceive, but rather he never felt the need to up until now.

After all... Seto really liked her.

Enough apparently, that he forgot there were sides of him she had never met.

He couldn't stop. Not until he'd rifled through every sheet. Every single note. Every single factoid about her. His eyes scanned over and over--re-reading in case he had somehow missed a key word that might clue him in.

But there was nothing.

There had to be something.

Pupils constricted as he crammed the papers close to his face. He was long past the point of hiding his desperation. His frustration. He perplexing loss at the situation. His fingers felt dry and raw over the edge of the pages.

Was he a masochist? The way that he was looking for blame? Why did he want it so bad? Why did he want her to despise him? Why did that feel fair? Why--why did he care so much about it being fair?

He ruined her life.

He caused her death.

WHY WASNT SHE ANGRY AT HIM?

Oliver dismissed himself from the room. Louis remained in his spot. Papers were abandoned on the table as he held his face. As he heard CZ start to speak, he interrupted.

"--don't--don't tell me anything comforting." He snapped. "I know whatever melt down I'm having doesn't make sense. I know--" He felt his throat tighten against the strain of his words. His chin dimpled.

"--I don't get it."

"I deserve it. I sincerely deserve it. To be hated. To be scorned. To be despised--I deserve all that. I always deserved it. I'm a piece of shit that profited off her fucking misery."

"...why isn't she mad at me?"

"Why does knowing I got off scott free hurt worse than being blamed."

// Cheng Zhi let the quiet settle for a moment. He only could imagine the type of thoughts running rampant through Louis' mind. He sat close and didn't get up, but he didn't reach to touch him for now.

He doesn't tell Louis that he's wrong, nor that he's right. That was never his prerogative. In these short three years he had known him, he knew that as soon as Louis decided he was deserving of punishment, he would seek it out even if there was none. And tragically, no amount of love Cheng Zhi could provide would change that.

Cheng Zhi quietly began gathering up the papers, tucking them all neatly into a pile. He poured water from the little jug that stood stagnant for the hour that they searched and slid the cup towards Louis.

" I don't know what Petra thought. " He finally said. " Neither would these papers. "

He didn't expect to be pulled into him. There was a short burst of shock, the need to remind CZ that they were somewhere public. But he knew, duh...and nevertheless, he was doing it. A gentle kiss in his hair. It was simple, gentle. And yet, it was somewhat comforting. More than he anticipated with his vague explanations.

"The last thing I wanna do is interrogate people about her last words. That's just implicating the hell outta myself and asking for trouble." Louis groaned at the thought. "It's a nice thought though, thank you. Sorry, don't mean to shit on it." He lingered in his hold for a minute until it felt too crowded to do so, pulling away just as the waitress was bringing their meal.

"Regardless of the final reason...it's my fault. The source of the issue is me." He eventually answered. He seemed bothered by that statement, restless. Guilty. He didn't seem willing to take the dismissal of his wrongdoings. He almost laughed at the thought, really. "I'm making a profit off them. Any blood that's spilled is on me. Its that simple."

// " Don't be sorry. It's a mere suggestion, not an order. "

No use being bitter about it. What Louis wanted, was Cheng Zhi to provide of course, but his love extended far enough that he could accept the areas he could not fill.

Later, like Louis had said, Oliver was a resourceful one. Cheng Zhi wondered how much he was paid to have gathered everything within a day. By the evening, a thick folder lay in front of Louis and he wasted no time in looking through it.

Police reports, inventories. Medical records, financial statements. Enough paper to account for an entire life. At some point Cheng Zhi joined the two in flipping through it all. Searching for a name.

Estimated Time of Death: Unknown Manner of Death: Apparent Suicide. Asphyxiation. The body was discovered in a state of advanced decay, estimated 10-20 days.

Then her age. Her sex. Date of birth. But no name.

No diary.

No letters.

No final statement.

No note addressed to anyone.

Not even a page torn from a notebook.

Cheng Zhi had stopped reading several minutes ago.

Louis hadn't.

He continued turning pages one after another, eyes scanning lines of numbers and official stamps as though a confession might suddenly appear between them.

For a moment, Cheng Zhi found himself wondering whether the neighbors had stolen it.

Whether the police had misplaced it.

Whether Oliver's contact had missed something.

Then he understood. They were all asking the same question.

Not where the note was.

Whether there had ever been one at all.

His gaze drifted back to Louis. Perhaps that's why he kept looking. Because if there were no note... there was no answer. No explanation, no blame or anyone to forgive. Her silence would grant him no relief, the perfect punishment. And what was worse was that she probably hadn't intended this.

She was a statistic. A line on the ledger. But Louis turned her into a name, a person. He searched for a personal connection that never existed and he was right. He didn't know her at all.

It would be normal to notice these things, but when clouded with adoration for his one and only being in his presence at all times, away from the world of bother, hidden with hood and even venturing without needed escort most nights - only meant great things to this Wyvern. He didn't need to look out for humans being rude, nor harmful, he didn't need to seek out disguises always to visit his delight in taverns or inns, to waste money upon food of diners or watch them leave him for long hours at the gates because he didn't want to venture into the human nests any more that week.

So, no - in the hindsight of his beloved being solo in his life was not seen as a bad thing. Hermits were a valid outcome for many creatures with knowledge seeking needs. Luit saw his mate as nothing more or nothing less than a man with a mission to learn as much as he could, experiment with his herbal collections and keep his eyes on the ball of his own path forward…

What did catch the Wyvern's eye though was the lack of movement for hours on end. He understood ink stained papers were a world of escape for many, addictive and moreish in every tail recorded, but he also knew that humans needed to eat frequently, often, at set hours of the day much like his own species. The sizes of their stomachs in their current state mimicked that of his human lovers. Though he could eat a lot, it was never a good feeling being full to the brim - so he maintained portions well.

Soup, bread, fruits and cheeses. A good blend of needs for the evening low-lights but when Luit was finished, dished up even - he called for his Ueda, only to be silenced out. Believing them to be finishing a paragraph - he sat at the table. He ate, slow… then stopped. An hour, two… by the half, he moved from the table to reach out and slither his fingers through the auburn strands of their head. Scratching light with nails and directing their head backwards. "Ueda… mate, it's been two and half hours since I called you." Gaze moves, left eye before the right - locking onto the book with a curious glance over the etchings but seeing it wasn't anything too complex, he didn't question it.

// " Mhn...? Ah-! " His eyes moved together with the text, his mind not fully registering that his book was lifted out from his hands. He hadn't even felt Luit's initial gesture to his hair. It was a low blow placing the book so high up in the pile, but it was the right choice, as Ueda's hands had begun to follow it, only to stop short when he recognized the futility of reaching it without gathering a stool.

Ueda wiggled his legs that swung free, like a naughty housecat caught doing something bad. Back on his feet again, Ueda felt the urge to hug Luit, and he didn't fight it, wrapping his arms soothingly around him. His scent was homely and reminded him of how stiff and tired he felt from sitting there so long. Perhaps that was why he didn't allow himself to spoil his body by cuddling up to Luit, it would be impossible to get back to studying.

" Hard...? Well... something like that. " Ueda released himself quickly from the embrace and sat himself down in front of the food, thanking Luit for his efforts and digging in before his mind could drift into thought.

True, the books he read were simple in nature. Maybe one or two rare tomes, but they were never hard to understand. How these text connected to each other would be an enigma, the only hint connecting them were that they were themed with human physiology.

"No--I mean, yes, but that's not the main issue." Louis started. "I..." He stopped.

...Sera had been talking to him about CZ recently too. And though they talked, CZ promised that he could be trusted, Louis found himself wondering if it was truly safe to be vulnerable with him, too.

He didn't feel like he had anyone to talk to. At the same time though, would he really say anything?

"...she's was someone I knew." He answered softly. "Someone way too fucking young to be killing themselves. If she implicated me, it'd be valid, though I don't want it for obvious reasons so now I've gotta check that shit. Then there's telling the other workers and dealing with that. If word gets to Frederich if there is some kinda uproar, I odn't want him sniffing around in my districts." Ugh. He already had a migraine. And he knew that he shouldn't. If it were Frederich, he wouldn't lose sleep over it. He shouldn't. Yet...he did.

Eventually he leaned on the table, running his hands down his face, pulling on his eyelids and cheeks to try and drag some fatigue off them to no avail.

// There it was. Louis was swallowing guilt that wasn't his. He could say that his attention to the situation was pure business, but it now seemed like he was searching for an answer, a meaning to her death. There must have been something that led to it being so sudden, she had been living fine for a while and now without reasoning, like on a whim, she decided it was time.

Was it foul play after all? Cheng Zhi thought, as he pulled Louis' head into his chest, pressing a soft kiss to his hair. He could care less who saw at the moment. " She must have been significant enough... was she a popular person at the establishments? Maybe people closer to her would be able to tell you what she was thinking in her last moments. The last thing I want for you is throwing energy blindly when it could be nothing at all. "

He found himself obsessing over it throughout the day. Sam's statement festered in his brain, all their interactions rolled themselves over in his skull. He kept pondering what he could have done differently to change it. Could he change it? Had he really done the most that he could?

Did he even have the right to ask that?

It was his fault. He could hear her scoffing as he said that, but he remained certain of it. It was his fault.

He wondered...if he had died, ended it before this like he fantasized time and time again. If he died in the club the night he overdosed...would she have lingered for longer? Taken the medical treatment from Sam or someone else? Or was he as disgusting as she thought he was for wondering if his life might have been enough to change her plans--

--he hadn't realized that he'd been lost in the thought again until CZ reached for him. The touch of his hand made him realize he was tense, fists clenched. He relaxed them, looking at the indentations of his nails into his palms. He felt how stiff he was from holding that position, a rough snort of air through his nose as he forced himself to relax. A weak smile was offered up to CZ.

"I'm good." He started, adjusting himself in the booth. "What are we getting?" There was a pause, a breath of silence.

// " I already ordered. " Louis had already forgotten that he have waved at something random on the menu.

" To not wait up or worry for you when you're like this, is asking the impossible of me. Are you worried over being implicated? We will find a solution... " Cheng Zhi knew that this was not the answer, but part of him hoped that it still was. It was the easiest to resolve. All it took was a couple hundred to line someone's pockets and Louis would be himself again.

"I don't know what she'd do. That's the problem..." Louis sighed, starting to pull at his hair subtly instead as he thought it over. "She hated my fucking guts--but wanted me to know that she would never revel in it. But also--" ...but also...

--he wasn't sure what he'd find more comforting either; her thinking him irrelevant or her hating him loudly and proudly. He stewed in that thought until the stench of the carpets teetered him over the edge, pulled back to reality as CZ was a third-person with no heart in the situation. He was grateful.

"Yeah. I'll get Oliver on it." He sighed, pulling out his phone. Once more, he was careful as he took his steps. Unable to help it though, his eyes fell back down onto the decomposition stain on the carpet. The floor was marred from whatever else had made its way into the house, but there was no denying the outline of a body. He swore he could see how she'd fallen. Where she laid. He could imagine how her flesh shifted. How her body suffered even if she wasn't there--

Its not fair.

It was never fair.

She shouldn't be dead.

He blinked. He took a deep breath. He stepped around the stain, albeit with a glance back.

// There was really no telling what danger Louis might have placed himself in by coming to the apartment instead of waiting for a third party to do so. If the police were watching the place due to whatever information they gathered. Cheng Zhi didn't urge Louis out, but his arms were stiff when he made the gesture out the door.

By leaving the circumstances of her death so public and yet so in the shadows, she must have known that Louis would come running. Just the thought made his blood boil, just what was this woman to him?

For now Cheng Zhi set aside his feelings and burning questions, he had to make sure Louis was somewhere safe. That he was fed, his basic needs met. He would make sure meetings were attended to on time, anything to keep Louis from thinking too much about it, even if futile.