logical and true;

cian  went  quiet,  but  not  from  retreat  —  more  like  something  in  him  had  finally  stilled.  the  warmth  of  ezequiel’s  hand  against  his  jaw,  the  low  murmur  of  his  voice,  the  sheer  steadiness  of  him  —  it  all  gathered  into  a  kind  of  peace  he  hadn’t  known  he’d  been  missing.  his  breath  came  out  slow,  shaky  but  sure  and  his  shoulders  eased  as  though  he’d  set  something  heavy  down.

his  eyes  flicked  up,  soft  and  searching,  and  for  a  heartbeat  he  just  looked  —  at  the  man  who  somehow  made  the  noise  in  his  head  go  still.  it  wasn’t  worship,  though  it  came  dangerously  close;  it  was  gratitude,  raw  and  wordless.  "i'll..  try.  promise."  his  thumb  brushed  absently  over  ezequiel’s  wrist  before  he  seemed  to  catch  himself,  drawing  back  only  a  little,  still  in  the  space  between  them.  his  nod  was  offered  partially  into  ez's  shoulder  and  neck,  but  it  was  easy  to  catch  regardless,  especially  with  how  close  they  were.

"yes-  yeah.  i'll  be  good."  he  had  a  wetness  in  his  eyes  he'd  deny  if  pointed  out  when  their  eyes  met  again,  brows  pulled  together  when  lips  parted  once  more  —  attempting  to  form  words,  but  failing  miserably  as  he  just  clasped  his  mouth  shut  again  shortly  after.  he  shouldn't  be  doing  this,  should  he?  he'd  been  sitting  on  his  emotions  for  a  little  while  now,  terrified  the  son  of  athena  read  those  out  of  him  like  he  devoured  books.  but  if  he  knew...  he'd  not  ...said  anything.

nor  did  he  ridicule  him.

he  didn't  know  what  he'd  do  without  ezequiel  here  in  camp.  leave,  probably.  but  he  preferred  this,  the  void  within  his  heart  absorbing  every  ounce  of  affection  the  older  man  offered.  their  noses  almost  touched  and  the  urge  to  lean  in  was  all  he  could  think  about  in  that  moment.  though  good  old  fear  kept  him  like  this,  frozen  between  them  despite  the  opportunity.  fingers  trembled  as  they  wound  around  the  other,  breathy  shaky  when  foreheads  touched.  about  time  ezequiel  dropped  him  on  his  arse.

"course you will," ezequiel whispered, one hand on his cheek, the other on the small of his back, pulling him fully onto his lap. the solid weight of his body fitting in neatly against ezequiel's. fingers slowly caressing his skin, slow and gentle, letting the moment stretch between the both of them, "such a good boy," his words were whispered gently, watching his face from so close, breaths mingling, "my good boy..." he said a little louder, nuzzling his cheek. cian might be too shy to say it, but ezequiel needed him to know he wasn't alone anymore, that he had someone waiting for him, taking care of him.

cian  huffed  a  laugh,  quiet  and  low,  his  breath  brushing  the  side  of  ezequiel’s  throat  before  it  slipped  free.  “aye,  solid  ground,”  he  murmured,  voice  gone  softer,  almost  lazy  with  warmth.  “can’t  promise  i’ll  not  wander,  though.  seems  i’ve  a  bad  habit  of  it.”

he  didn’t  pull  back  this  time.  instead,  he  leaned  in,  slow  and  unhurried,  until  the  side  of  his  face  found  ez’s  chest  —  could  feel  the  steady  rise  and  fall  there,  the  low  hum  of  his  heartbeat.  the  sound  eased  something  raw  in  him,  something  that  had  been  thrumming  too  loud  since  the  day  he  came  back.  he  let  his  cheek  rest  there  for  a  long  beat,  the  warmth  and  steady  pressure  grounding  him  in  a  way  words  never  could.

“i’m  tryin’  not  to  doubt  it,”  he  said  after  a  pause,  words  a  little  muffled.  “her,  i  don’t  doubt.  never  her.  just…  me.  what  she  saw  worth  keepin’.”

his  hand  found  its  way  to  ez’s  shirt,  fingers  curling  in  the  fabric  like  an  anchor,  not  desperate,  just  needing  to  feel  real.  he  traced  a  lazy,  almost  unconscious  path  along  the  cloth,  sensing  the  solid  warmth  beneath.  “but  i’m  listenin’,”  he  added,  a  small  smile  ghosting  across  his  lips.  “to  both  of  you.  even  if  i’m  shite  at  it.”

he  drew  a  long,  careful  breath,  the  kind  that  tasted  of  ash  and  something  sweeter  —  safety,  maybe.  then  he  tilted  his  head  up,  the  distance  between  them  small  enough  that  the  light  caught  in  his  lashes.  “and  for  what  it’s  worth—”  his  voice  faltered,  the  smile  turning  shy,  “i’m  glad  you’re  here  to  see  it.  whatever  comes  next.”

for  a  heartbeat,  he  didn’t  move.  then  his  fingers  eased,  brushing  against  ez’s  chest  —  a  touch  light  as  breath,  unthinking,  reverent  —  before  he  let  them  fall  away  again.  his  head  stayed  tucked  close  for  a  little  longer,  just  feeling  the  steady  warmth  and  heartbeat  beneath  him,  letting  the  quiet  fill  the  space  between  them.

cian’s  mind  fluttered,  a  little  chaotic  under  the  calm  of  the  moment.  he  knew  he  shouldn’t  feel  this  way  —  not  fully,  not  so  raw  —  but  he  couldn’t  stop  the  warmth  that  spread  through  his  chest.  the  small,  insistent  ache  when  ez’s  hand  or  presence  brushed  against  him.  it  was  grounding  and  dizzying  all  at  once,  the  kind  of  ache  that  made  him  aware  of  every  breath,  every  pulse  and  every  inch  of  closeness  between  them. 

he  let  himself  linger  there  a  moment  longer,  safe  in  the  quiet,  his  heart  half-afraid  to  betray  the  feelings  he  barely  understood,  half-hoping  ez  might  sense  them  anyway.  “how  are  you  so  sure  of…  everything  all  the  time?”  like  he  knew  something  they  didn't.

"i'm glad too. but i won't have any of this talk from my boy," a hand gripped his chin, gentle but firm. foreheads brushing together as he breathed in, hand drifting down to his waist as he pulled him in closer, a tight, protective hold.

"sure is one thing i'm less and less the longer we spend here." he says, hand caressing his hair, "but i have seen enough and i know enough to see you're not giving yourself enough credit."

he leans in, letting him be comfortable enough to linger and melt under his touches if he so wishes. lips press against cian's forehead, thumb rubbing a tense spot in his neck. "don't talk like that anymore hm?" his mouth moved lower, kissing his cheek, nuzzling him, "can you do that for me baby boy?" at once fatherly and not so innocent, but there was no pressure, not aside from the gentle order and the expectation he would do better from now on, if not for himself then for ezequiel and his mother.

"gonna be good for me, won't you?" it was not as much a question anymore, enveloping him in his arms, mouth on his skin. claiming him in a way, cian was already someone under his care but it went deeper now, after everything, with the way he looked at him, fell into him, listened to him. he knew enough about people to know he was a romantic, to know where this would lead if ezequiel was the kind of man cian dreamt with, he knew he checked boxes but he also knew the baggage he carried; the authority, the draw of him, the ring on his finger.

"'Honestly, you should damn near take it as a compliment. They wanted to mighty piss off your mother something fierce." Cassidy drawled with that little hint of mischief in his eyes. It had been a long day with a few losses but Cassidy was ever part of the sunshine that was his namesake.

"Take a break, Ez. Take a breath. As bad as it looks- the world will still be here in five minutes. Pretty sure I saw Briar running over a few demons with an amberlence." He pointed out with a little wave of his gun behind him.

"Oh I think they did it, cowboy. She showed up all mighty and pissed, gave us a little extra fuel." Ezequiel approached him, resting his tired, bloody body against the cowboy's, face buried in his neck as he laughs at his words, he did see the ambulance but he didn't have the time to think of who or what was being done.

"Should be a fun time for him at least." He held the cowboy, taking his advice and breathing in and out, slowly. "It looked really bad for a while, I'm glad you guys are here."

"I'm glad you are here." He would have worried, a lot more perhaps if Cassidy too was in danger, but now that most of it was gone he felt all too aware of the risks he ran away from some of the people that mattered the most.

"I can heal you if you want though. I have maybe...two more in me." he said softly extending his hand the soft glow of purple and gold wreathing his touch if Ez chose to take his hand.

"Are...are you ok? I'm really sad. And I'm really sad for you. You were amazing by the way. All of it was amazing. " Looking at the other man keeping it so...together on the surface, Lucian wished he could be like that.

Plunged into war, and now reaping its cost. He smiled at him, he could see the weariness, even if he wasn't as sharp as he was. "You did well, you held your own." He tells him, "I am sure you made your father proud."

He takes his hand, welcoming it. "Spare yourself. It's been a long day, and there are people in worse condition." He nodded at him. "The potion is still here if you want, we need to stay standing somehow."

He patted his shoulder gently, a sigh escaping his lips. "Thank you." He manages, what else can be said? Over the destruction on his mother's city? Hurt but standing, when others haves fallen. "We knew there might be a cost... I didn't want others to pay it. I..."

Ezequiel's eyes shot up, the image of his mother burned into his memory. "There is always a price, going up against titans. I'm sorry we couldn't do more, some of you are too new, too young to..." but it was useless, they were soldiers in a war. Ezequiel knew there was no way to avoid death forever, no way to avoid sacrifice.

“lucky?  i  should,  shouldn't  i?  i  suppose  i  am.”  he  looked  away  for  a  heartbeat,  fiddling  with  the  edge  of  his  sleeve.  “lucky  to  be  breathing,  aye.  lucky  to  wake  up  at  all.”  but  the  words  tasted  half-finished;  there  was  the  other  thought  underneath,  the  one  he  didn't  like  to  say  out  loud  —  maybe  he  was  meant  to  die  there,  maybe  another  son  of  nemesis  was  meant  to  step  into  whatever  role  he'd  been  nudged  from.  the  idea  sat  like  a  stone  in  his  chest,  making  everything  else  feel  thin  and  echoing.

ez  was  one  of  the  few  who  had  been  permitted  so  close;  not  just  with  his  life,  he  thought,  but  with  the  small,  shy  parts  of  his  heart.  he  wasn't  good  at  admitting  that,  not  really,  so  he  let  his  fingers  do  it  instead,  squeezing  ez's  hand  where  it  lay  on  his  thigh.  “don't  be,”  he  murmured,  a  little  smile  tugging  at  the  corner  of  his  mouth.  he  leaned  in,  tilting  his  head  to  rest  against  ez's  shoulder  like  it  was  something  steady  he  could  trust.  “i'm  weird,  you  already  know  that."

the  squeeze  of  his  hand  tightened,  small  and  quick,  then  eased.  he  let  the  silence  stretch  a  moment,  drawing  breath  like  he  wasn’t  sure  how  to  put  it  into  words.  “it  was…”  his  voice  dropped  lower,  rough  at  the  edges.  “she  heard  me.  properly,  like  every  word  mattered.  told  me  i  hadn’t  failed  her.  told  me  she  chose  me  for  all  the  bits  i  thought  made  me  weak.”  his  throat  worked  as  he  swallowed,  eyes  flicking  down  toward  the  seashell  at  his  bedside.

“and  then—”  he  shook  his  head  a  little,  as  if  even  now  he  struggled  to  believe  it.  “wings,  fire,  just  like  mine.  hers.  i  mean  they're  hers,  but  they  looked  like  mine.  she  burned  with  it  and  still…  she  kissed  my  head  like  i  was  hers.  bound  the  shell  into  me.  said  i’d  never  carry  myself  alone  again.  she  said  she’d  always  be  listening.” 

his  lips  curved  faintly,  almost  reverent,  like  the  memory  itself  warmed  him  from  within  as  he  curled  tighter  against  the  other.  “i’ve  never  seen  anything  so  terrible  and  so  beautiful.  i  think  i’d  follow  her  into  the  sea  if  she  asked.”  the  words  slipped  out  before  he  could  catch  them,  and  a  flush  of  color  touched  his  cheeks.  he  glanced  away,  sheepish,  the  awe  still  clear  in  his  voice  even  as  he  muttered,  “sorry.  sounds  mad  when  i  say  it  like  that.”

he shushes him, caressing his hair as he feels the other relax against him. pulling him closer, almost to his lap given the way he seemed to fold in that moment but respecting whatever distance he still might want to keep.

he smiles gently at him, thumb against his cheek as he seems to get embarrassed at the end. he shakes his head, "doesn't sound mad at all, seeing a god is... something else," he speaks from experience, "knowing you're family, knowing what they have set out for you..." he smiles, "but stay on solid ground yeah? at least unless you're certain of where you're stepping. i've been able to trust my mother, even when fixing her mistakes."

he presses a kiss against his temple, gently brushing off his hair in a gesture a father couldn't easily kick off. keeping the younger man close.

"you should listen to her though, and to me, she seems certain of her choice and i don't like hearing you doubt yourself you know." he rubbed his hand across cian's ribs, gentle and grounding as he spoke. "you survived something incredible, and you learned how much you matter to your mother..."

cian  figured  the  news  had  made  its  rounds  through  camp  by  now  —  probably  had  before  the  sun  even  sank  last  night.  he  didn’t  much  mind  people  talking;  he’d  lived  to  tell  the  tale,  hadn’t  he?  or  something  like  that.  truth  be  told,  he  wasn’t  sure  yet  how  to  feel.  other  than  mind-crumbling  fear,  at  least.

“right.”  his  smile  faltered,  the  reminder  catching  in  him.  “lucky  me,  eh?”  he  really  had  been.  samson  and  the  others  beside  him  had  kept  him  breathing.  without  them,  he’d  be  gone.

“no,  not  at  all.  just  out  of  the  shower’s  all.  lookin’  a  state,  really.”  nearly  dying  —  or  dying  and  clawing  back  —  had  left  him  caked  in  dirt  and  blood,  the  kind  that  clung  to  skin  even  after  scrubbing.  now  it  was  only  the  bruises  and  the  hollow  exhaustion  that  showed.  “no,  uh…  just  slept.  think  i’m  fine.  except—”  his  hand  lifted,  palm  pressing  flat  to  his  chest.  his  eyes  unfocused,  words  trailing  off  before  he  shook  himself  back.

“thought  i’d  shake  things  up  a  bit  in  camp,”  he  said,  mouth  quirking  faintly.  “would  you  have  missed  me  if  i’d  died?  …wait,  don’t  answer  that.”  his  fingers  slipped  through  ez’s,  tugging  him  inside  before  the  question  had  chance  to  linger.  he  climbed  onto  his  bed,  folding  his  legs  beneath  him,  the  mattress  dipping  with  his  weight and pulling ez to sit with him.

“i…  went  to  talk  to  my  mom.”

ezequiel eyed him, curious but not prying. it was a lot to take in, a lot to live through. facing down a titan, being struck down... he felt somewhat responsible in a weird way. what could he have done if he was there? or would he be among those who barely made it back?

"except...?"

he snorted, he certainly had shaken things up but that was not the sort of excitement any of them needed to be quite honest. his expression softened at the question, shaking his head as he was pulled inside he scoffed.

"of course i'd miss you," he said, "you feeling the need to ask worries me."

"Guilty as charged." he drawled as the othes hand slipped down to tease along his gun and outline of his currently aching hard cock. The blond's head tilted back against the wall and it's hard to know what turned him on more- those little delicate touches to the sliver of gun or the erotic feeling of those fingers dancing along his cock.

"I- " Cassidy chuckled before that hand closed tight around his cock and gave it a squeeze as that pain from the bite to his bottom lip flooded his system. The perfect mix of pain and pleasure enhancing the moment. His hips shifted forward into that hand and arched off the wall even as that hand came around to give his ass a squeeze.

"Hm, don't tempt me. Either way, wanna watch you deep-throating one of them, baby boy." He leaned forward to nip at the others jawline. Cassidy's own hand smoothed down to slip into the back of the others pants and gave his asss a squeeze.

It was probably not wise, to be all up in each in public like this and yet they couldn't seem to stop. Ezequiel was sure one of these days Chiron would pull them in for a stern talking to, but until then he might just have to keep risking it.

He snorted at the term, nipping at his chin as he rubbed his clothed cock. Letting those hands roam freely and squeeze his cheeks, making no protests even as Cassidy slid them in under his jeans. He had been ready for it for a while now.

"Should I do both of them, daddy?" He whispered back, tongue peeking out between his lips as he looked back and forth before dropping to his knees.

@ezfontes location: nemesis cabin

cian hadn’t really left his cabin since coming back from saving moros. technically it had been less than twenty-four hours, but without sleep time dragged on like an eternity. when he did finally collapse, it hadn’t been restful — not in the slightest. he still saw her every time he closed his eyes, still felt her blades when he moved, the mark above his heart throbbing like a reminder he didn’t need. not that scars ever worried him, but failure carved into skin was another matter.

at least he’d managed to pull on a pair of sweats and drag himself to the showers. he was just drying off when a knock came at the cabin door. victor wouldn’t be knocking. ziggy had already brought cookies. so… who? sluggish, still heavy-limbed, it took him a moment to cross the room, but when he pulled the door open, face half-way covered by a shirt he hastily pulled on and saw the face on the other side, a smile tugged at him before he could stop it — faint, tired, but carrying a glint of the joy he thought he’d left behind.

“hey… didn’t think i’d see you here.” his voice came softer than usual, but warm. he stepped back, opening the door wider. “c’mon in, if you’ve time.”

"thought i'd come check up on you," he smiled faintly, "not every day one comes back from the dead."

he nodded, moving closer with a hand around his arm. "hope i didn't catch you in a bad time." he said, "have you been looked at yet?" he questioned as they made it into the cabin proper.

"i know you wanted an interesting story to get people hooked, but i told you tragedies are not really my thing darling."

after his father's mind began to slip, it felt like arthur would always be on his own. he'd been the one who carried his father on his back and he continued to do with no hesitation but he thought that would be it for him. once his dad was gone, there'd be nothing else. and then he discovered who his mother was, met his brothers, and built a connection with ez. for the first time in years, arthur wasn't alone.

arthur had plenty of lovers, men who crawled in and out of his bed over the years, but this was different. their divinity was one in the same and it felt like ez was an extension of himself, a part of him that had been missing without arthur ever realizing. now that the two of them were together, it was like they were stitched to one another. two halves of the same whole.

"I think it would be worth" He smiled at him, "Or just have it be the three of you and your kids"

He rolled his eyes as he laughed at the joke slipping into the easy conversation. "Just a promise really letting the other know that we want the same thing from each other." A shrug as he brought his lips to rim of his drink.

"maybe... maybe once things calm down we can do that. invite those of you that made yourselves dear to us." he says, "it might be nice, to remind them of my commitment, now that i'm more here than there."

"careful there, that sounds a lot like wedding vows..." he teased, falling into the kiss with ease. everything was light and beautiful that night, despite the hard truths they faced, despite the greatness of what they still had ahead. it felt good to enjoy it with someone he cared so much for.

those gray eyes that the two shared, what they inherited from their mother herself. the same ones that even when ezequiel forgot his memory of arthur for a moment, he could see the same inquisitive and curious soul through those gray irises. under the surface of a beautiful and charming face, arthur could see the essence that was ezequiel fontes. they were two halves of the same being.

as those lips met arthur's wiry muscles, his happy trail seemed to lead the other child of athena down towards his cock. this was all new for the both of them, he'd been with his fair share of men at camp as had ez but this was entirely new for the both of them. while some may have seen it as taboo, arthur chose the perspective that they were just like the gods who came before them. how could you truly calculate familial ties when divinity ran through your blood. the same divinity they got from gods who had all more or less been together since the dawn of time.

he would've answered him, would've done more than smirk if tasting him wasn't so urgent. if arthur didn't push his head down and made him take his cock so eagerly down his throat. his eyes closed, hair falling over his face as he moved with ease, humming around him as savored his brother's taste.