"La vita va avanti."

[sharktrash]

Who: Squalo and: Xanxus, Genos, Koumei, YOU!
What: Catch-all for January Shenanigans.
When: Jan 1st-15th ish
Where: MANTICORE penthouse, Pride HQ, possibly elsewhere
Warnings: language, violence, dicks out, the usual. will detail for each toplevel

(( Prompts in toplevels below! Feel free to tag into the ones marked as OPEN. I am still waiting on details for some of them, hence "placeholders" since I wanted to put the threads up in chronological order. They'll be there soon enough! Also, feel free to PM this account or hit me up on Plurk if you want a thread, too! ))

Comments

[sharktrash]

Hn. I don't think our wishes mean much around here. If they forget how to be smart, we can't do shit for them. Just try to cover your own ass, yeah?

[ He chuckles at that expression, probably because they're both buck-naked right now. ]

Figuratively speaking.

[ Taking a few more sips, his expression going serious again. ]

I know Xanxus.

[dishevelment]

Oh, do you? It's kind of hard not to around here.

[The commentary was light, except he knew that Squalo meant a 'knowing' of a different sort was intended here.]

...My contact in Virgo. I think I 'knew' him too.

[sharktrash]

You know what I mean.

[ He actually sounds annoyed. Guess it's a touchy subject. ]

[ He'll let it go, though, and nod. ]

Yeah, I figured. Most relatives know each other, if that's indeed the case. [ a pause. ] Sorry for your loss, I guess.

[dishevelment]

[A solemn nod is his only reply.]

If I'm supposedly military, then so is he; we're both prepared for what fate may bring....although I suspect his is going to be especially cruel.

But thank you for the sympathy. It's appreciated.

[sharktrash]

[ ...considering Koumei seemed to think his own fate would end up in being paraded around the streets dead by the enemy, the "especially cruel" part piques his interest. ]

Were you... tipped off about him, too?

[dishevelment]

It's only rationality, [Koumei said, glancing up at Squalo from his position in their shared tub.] Everyone knows that history is told by those who win battles. Those who lose are often painted in ways that conseal their true intents.

...Besides. That world is less than pleasant. I've seen things that would give nightmares to some of the children here, and I can't begin to imagine what else has yet to be uncovered.

[sharktrash]

[ He nods. ]

Those who win, or those who survive. They usually coincide.

[ He's not entirely convinced about the second part. ]

Some of the children here would get nightmares from fucking unicorns. That's not exactly a good measurement. [ He shakes his head. ] I think I know what you mean, though. [ A pause. ] Do you prefer this kind of life?

[dishevelment]

[He shrugged. That was...a hard question to answer.]

Do you? This life is....relatively peaceful, but there are more unknowns.

And it's more quiet.

[sharktrash]

[ He frowns, focusing on something to the side. A spot on the farthest wall, probably. ]

I think I do. I'm alive, I'm famous, I'm adored, I get to create and make a difference... and nobody's routinely giving me cranial trauma.

[ Ah yeah, that. ]

[dishevelment]

.....Probably for being 'lazy' and sleeping on the job, right?

[It was a viceral flash of a memory-- someone sharply whacking him upside the head and yelling at him to Wake up!. They couldn't afford to let anyone see their petty squabbles anymore!]

[sharktrash]

[ He frowns, as if considering it for a moment. ]

...no. I think I was pretty damn good at my job. Whatever it was.

[dishevelment]

....I know I was good at mine, [he said quietly, recalling that flash of that strange kid yelling at him to take better care of 'his country.' Whatever that meant.]

I just feel like it was exhausting, but there was a certainty to it. Like I could see an outcome....whatever it was.

[sharktrash]

[ Maybe he was a (gasp) prince or something. :0 ]

Hmm.

[ Sounds like a brainy kind of job. Squalo has a vague impression that he enjoyed his job, but he's pretty sure it's nowhere near the levels he enjoys making music, so whatever. His expression lightens up a bit and he smirks again, canting his head slightly to the side and motioning the other man over with one hand. ]

Come here.

[dishevelment]

[Brainy? Perhaps-- Koumei was quite intelligent underneath that wild mop of hair that he hid himself underneath, and he was the sort who liked to keep his mind occupied regardless of what was going on. But he was also tired lately. Sleep had been evading him worse than usual because of a sense of worry that came from a place he couldn't quite define.

Getting it off his chest to someone who wouldn't judge him was nice. He trusted his band, but he didn't want to show weakness in front of them either.

Returning Squalo's grin with a tired smile of his own, Koumei shifted to the other side of the tub and settled in next to Squalo.]

...You really are quite nice to look at, [he said, idly running a hand up Squalo's chest as he spoke.] And touch.

Thanks for listening. That's been bugging me for a while.

[sharktrash]

[ He looks like the kind of person who would enjoy chess, or go, or that kind of games, actually. Maybe they should play sometime. Well, Squalo will probably string out and flip a table within a few turns, but still. ]

[ Clearly he needs something to help him sleep, then. :0 ]

I know. [ Handled like a true gentleman. He looks very pleased at the touch. ] So are you, you know.

[ He makes a vague "hn" sound which probably means some kind of "you're welcome", and gently brushes his fingers along the side of Koumei's neck before his hand rests on the back of the other's head, his grin growing wider. ]

Take a dip.

[ Well that took an unexpected turn. ]

[dishevelment]

Hm?

[That was sudden. Koumei looked at him in bemusement for a moment before, the mellow mood now broken, he burst out in laughter.]

A little eager to play, aren't you?

[He asked, plunging that hand downward to settle teasingly on the lanky man's cock. Delicately--very delicately-- he brushed his fingers on the sensitive flesh and shifted to nestle his head against Squalo's shoulder.]

Lets take our time if were doing that. I rather like breathing.

[sharktrash]

[ He has to fight the urge to swat the other man over the head. Luckily, he is by no means unhappy with that dick touch, which evidently placates him enough to just give Mei a light flick on the forehead, looking like he's trying really hard to keep from laughing. ]

Playing with dicks comes later. I'm washing your hair, you thirsty fuck.

[ WHAT A SWEET TALKER ]

Excuse the icon....

[dishevelment]

--Oh.

[Congratulations, Squalo-- you've embarrassed him. Withdrawing entirely, Koumei seemed sufficiently chastized for a naked man who was in the bathtub with another naked man.]

It's hard to tell with the way you grin sometimes. Guess that's why the girls go crazy for you.

[sharktrash]

[ Yeah, now he'll actually laugh. Or, well, sort of chuckle. He slings an arm around Koumei to stop him from withdrawing too far, and leans in to plant a kiss under his jaw. ]

Probably. [ He still looks amused and smug. ] Don't worry, you'll get to be as filthy as you'd like soon enough.

[ And then he gently tugs on that mop of hair. Down you go. ]

[dishevelment]

[Down, indeed.]

Okay, okay. [Koumei said, batting Squalo's hands away so he could lower himself into the water as suggested. Being in the man's arms like this was oddly comforting-- and, after everything that's been happening lately, a very welcome change.]

[sharktrash]

[ He'll watch all that red hair get thoroughly soaked, poking it into the water to help it along. The man might not be a prettyboy but he's definitely a beautiful creature as far as Squalo is concerned. Especially like this. All wet and naked next to him. Perfect. ]

[ Once it looks like it's done proper, he'll help Koumei straighten back up by putting a hand under his head, since he knows how fucking heavy this much of wet hair can be. And then he's reaching for the hair care bottles. ]

[dishevelment]

[The mop of hair was quite heavy-- there was a reason why Koumei didn't do this as often as he should, and why the process when he did bother took far, far too long. Pushing his soaking hair over his shoulder, he grinned sheepishly at Squalo before peering at the veritable apothecary of hair care products.]

Thanks. What all do we have here?

[sharktrash]

Shampoo. Conditioner. Oils.

[ He'll point them and more out, and grab a shampoo bottle first, grinning. ]

Now then. This is a real trust exercise, you know.

[dishevelment]

[Koumei chuckled.]

We're sitting naked together in a bathtub-- if that's not trust, then I don't know what is.

[sharktrash]

Not quite on the level as not getting product into your eyes, though.

[ He nudges Koumei to move forward a bit so he gets decent access to all that hair, then starts squeezing shampoo onto the thickness of it and the top of the other's head, and then some more into his hands so he can slowly massage it in from the sides as well. ]