#hemitekoha

"Ah, there you are." Yip smiled as he looked up at the man he invited for lunch. Le Clair de Lune might be exclusive, but it was designed and intended to as good as any top rank French restaurants in the world. Yip has already reserved several items on the menu. After all, he was to treat the councilman of New Zealand. Only the best would be appropriate.

"I was informed of the incident three months ago. included your condition." Yip started the conversation with the topic to clear off the air. "Therefore, I think it will be best for me to first re-introduce myself. I am Yip, and it's a pleasure to meet you." His words were respectful, acknowledged the other man was in a higher political position. However, his posture was proper, unaffected by the man's status. Motion and body language remained graceful and light.

"I was in New Zealand four months ago for business. I took the liberty in my free time to have a closer look at the policy changes over the past few years. Other than the obvious favouritism over the demonic race, your deeds are remarkable in several fields. You do not need an old man's approval, especially one that you have no memories of. But I would like you to know that I am glad, to see that you are no longer the young man who always thought he had to prove himself to the council table." Yip smiled; his words were sincere. He didn't speak those words to gain any favour. "You have come a long way, Hemi."

Since he’d been through this once before already, it didn’t take much time for Seth to adjust to his “new” body. Weirdly, he didn’t mind being stuck like this for a few days only because he knew it wasn’t permanent. The only downside was that this form happened to be almost a full foot shorter than usual, and he was not a fan of the shorter height. Especially in instances like these where he needed to grab something – a wine glass, in this scenario – from one of the higher shelves. The witch stretched on his tippy toes, gritting his teeth while his finger tips just barely grazed the shelf’s bottom edge. If only he could somehow expand his spine to gain another half inch...

He saw a figure move behind him out of his peripherals, and he paused, glancing back. “Hey,” he half-snapped, clearly a little frustrated, “do you maybe wanna fuckin’ help?”

Manny was thrilled he'd won his first match. This was already turning out better than last year. Finally, he could really prove himself in this tournament. Getting through a wendigo in round one hadn't been an feat, the shifter winning with a few good scratches and bruises. Healed up and ready to go, he prepared for his next fight. 

This one, he wasn't so confident in winning, but he planned on giving it his all. He knew the name of his opponent as one of the councilmen mainly thanks to his brief ownership under Kol back in the day. Clearly, Hemi was older and definitely stronger, but that wouldn't stop Manny from trying to crush his skull or his throat in his jaws. He stepped back into the ring, rolling his shoulders and stretching his neck. He eyed his opponent across the ring in that barely there armor before seamlessly transforming into his jaguar state. The moment the bell rang to start their fight, he roared and sprinted across the ring with his teeth bared, ready to strike.

It’d been about a month since Raphael had seen or heard from his fledgling, and needless to say, he was rather annoyed by it. How dare Kris abandon him in such a way without even a note or a message or anything. In truth, the councilman was certain that the new enforcer was probably very busy with his job. Still, on a day where there were surprisingly no council meetings today, and his slave out and about, that left one very bored Raphael. And that usually resulted in nothing good. 

That was how the demon found himself in one of the hallways, cans of different colored spray paints neatly set on the floor by his feet while he worked on his latest piece. The colorful graffiti of dicks were no Sistine Chapel, but they were still quite the fucking masterpiece in Raph’s opinion. And the fact that he was doing it all mostly with his left hand, he might as well be the next Michaelangelo. He was just putting the final touches on the balls of the newest addition – a rather large cock painted in the most shocking electric blue with some bright purple shading – when he heard footsteps approaching. A quick glance out of the corner of his eye recognized fellow councilman Hemi, and he turned to give him a smirk. “Like it? I thought the place could use some brightening up,” he commented. “You can either stand there and admire my work, or you can grab a can and join me. Judgment over what I do in my free time is not welcomed here.” 

One of those unfortunate times happened to be with Hemi when it was obvious the demon was dealing with his own issues. He felt awful that he’d blown up on him instead of done something else – anything other than just have a complete fucking breakdown. And the next thing he knew, Hemi had gone off on some kind of “vacation” or whatever without so much as a goodbye or explanation. Seth wasn’t so thrilled to hear this from Jolyan, though he appreciated that his friend gave him the news to ease his worry. Still, the lack of communication rubbed him the wrong way, bouncing in between worrying that Hemi wanted nothing to do with him any more and just plain annoyed until he felt nothing at all. 

Speak of the devil. As Seth was curled up on the couch with It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia as background noise and a book in his lap, he detected the familiar shadowy energy enter the suite. He didn’t bother lifting his head or turning to look at him. “You’re back,” he said casually. “Have a nice trip?” 

Seth had never found Hemi in the midst of battle. After Percy’s warning of omens, that had been pretty much the main thing on his mind. With little to no other information besides “a bad feeling,” the witch had been left to his own imagination on all the horrible possibilities. A knot grew in the pit of his stomach, stretching into his chest and causing an uncomfortable tightness. He needed to find his boyfriend immediately...assuming he was still alive.  

The knot loosened only slightly when he heard from another resident that Hemi had been seen earlier that day. He instinctively made his way into the demon’s suite, finding it empty for the moment. The witch turned with wide eyes when Hemi finally showed up. He was alive and appeared to be in one piece and Seth’s gaze softened as he exhaled a breath he’d been holding for hours. He immediately ran over, pulling him in for a quick hug. “Hemi, thank god,” he said, pulling back, looking him over with knitted brows. “I’m sorry, I looked all over, but I...” He trailed off, shaking his head. “Are you all right?” 

After the tournament ended, Seth wanted nothing more than to rest and relax. He’d immediately and thankfully been fixed up after his fight against Bear, but all that action had been draining. He was tired, achy, and he couldn’t remember ever using that much power in his magic before in his life. Normally, he’d probably Jolyan fussing over him at this point, but that only served to remind him of how much he missed his friend who no longer resided in Krovs. He wondered how Hemi was holding up. 

He grabbed a bottle of whiskey and headed for the demon’s suite. He knocked and waited until Hemi answered before he greeted him with a small smirk, holding up the bottle. “I brought medicine,” he said, “Figured you might be in a mood to drink.” The witch’s smirk grew a little more. “And I could use a hot nurse.”