lifeaftr | Happy Birthday Aster

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Happy Birthday Aster

Who: Shion, Aster and anyone! Mingle among yourselves!
What: It's Aster's birthday. Any and all friends are welcome (and if you don't know them you are still welcome, they won't turn anyone away)
Where: The southern beach on Islet four.
Warnings: Hopefully none

Aster's birthday was important. A date she had chosen herself, a date to celebrate her and everything she had achieved so far.

The last time they had celebrated had been in the tower and now they were in a completely different world with different friends and Shion was determined for it to be a nice day.

He had had help. Ignis had helped cook of course. Shion heavily suspected the candied fruits were from Dagger and he had no idea how exactly Connor had managed it (and he wasn't going to ask) but Laurent had provided ice for sea salt ice cream.

There's a fire on the beach and fish on sticks to roast. Guests may have to wrestle off an overexcited Dreaeater but Shion tries to keep Excalibur under control for the most part. Cobweb and Thalassa are a lot more calm, flopping down near friends to demand pets.

Shion keeps an eye on Aster, hoping she is having fun.

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"Not necessarily. I've lost a lot of battles in my life. Still here. If you're planning on taking me out, you're going to have to use more than a knife."

Granted a knife is what had nearly ended his life before he'd met Ushara, but that was before. Now he has a lot more power and he's actually healthy. There's a big difference.

"I'm everyone's most hated asshole generally. Worse than you, though Shion's opinion of you is probably tainted by his general rose colored view of people."

Yeah, he knows who you are even though he's never actually met you. It's one of the pleasures of mind reading.

"Probably could."

Though he doesn't actually make a move to do so. It's hard to say whether everyone would really want him there even if Shion and Aster actually do.

"Wonder if they'd even know what was going on. It seems like everywhere we've been have had gods. Wonder if some giant continent would need some giant god, or if it'd just be some normal place that would think our situation is completely unbelievable."

As he tried to imagine the perspective of people living on another land, another thought came to him. "What if this is some sort of world that's like, mostly gods? Or all gods? I mean, it seems like we find gods more than people, almost. It's weird."

The fire reaches for the air, managing to send a few dancing embers toward the night sky but the flames themselves remain close to the ground. Their heat slowly scorches the fish, cooking it to perfection on the inside while browning it on the out.

"Why are you making it an official invitation? I've visited."

He's stopped by, but he doesn't stay for dinner. He doesn't stay for long. Nezumi isn't used to just...visiting people without a purpose. He tried to make them up at first, but eventually, he just shrugged it off.

Shion's trying to slowly get him into life here. All the years before don't just disappear, and Nezumi doesn't want them to. They've made him strong, they've made him into a survivor.

He leans back.

"What time's dinner?"

"Then they weren't trying to kill you, obviously. Unless you're telling me you're a zombie. In that case, I just have to take off your head... Isn't that right? It shouldn't be too hard if I cut in at the right angles.

But since you're offering such useful information about your weaknesses, don't let me stop you."

His eyes narrow. He doesn't like that someone would have more information on him than he'd have on them. Information is a power Nezumi prefers to wield.

"And what has Shion said about me?"

"Everyone tries to kill me. Pretty much part and parcel of my life since the moment I was born. I've lost a lot of battles, but that doesn't mean I lost the minsid war. I'm still alive, clearly."

He hadn't shared much of anything about his weaknesses either, and honestly, it wouldn't matter if he had. None of them are here.

"Very little. He's just thought a lot about you."

That's probably unsettling, but Jules had intended it that way.

"Your math isn't adding up, but I don't feel the need to stop and give you a lesson. Instead, explain what you mean."

Thought about him. Nezumi knows what he's implying, but it also shouldn't be possible. Shouldn't is an important word here, really. He won't show how unnerved that very idea makes him. What Nezumi projects and what he thinks are often two very different things.

A test, then. If you're really in my head, tell me where I'm from. The answer, should you be able to read minds, is Barose.

A deeper thought lingers beneath the name.

Western District.

Yes, Nezumi is even trying to lie in a mindreading test.

"Knock it off, would you? Blocking out the endless noise is enough of a pain in the ass without you purposefully directing thoughts at me. I try to keep that damn door closed to respect people's privacy and you're just throwing the fucking thing open full force."

Honestly, that's just irritating. He doesn't want an open invitation into anyone's head. He has enough of his own dark secrets without needing to carry anyone else's.

"And you could come from one of the minsid moons for all I care."

The small trace of doubt that Nezumi carried vanishes. This man can't read minds. A simple test could have proven his point. It's an easy guess that someone's next move would be to test this stranger's claims.

"Save your cheap parlor tricks for somebody gullible enough to buy them. I don't know if I even believe a knife couldn't kill you." But Shion wouldn't want him to, not without there being a defensive reason. Maybe not even then, but Nezumi will defend himself. "But I'll bet even if that's your one truth, they won't feel good. Enough cuts will make you wish you were dead."

He can't openly tell the man to stay away from Shion. That's opening a door to a weakness, even if he doesn't admit how big of a weakness Shion is for him.

"I dragged myself to this party, and I'll be very disappointed if I end up having to go home to change. Even if you look like that, try to keep from trying anything."

"Do you want to?" He wouldn't force him. But it would be nice for him to join them. He was someone Aster considered a friend after all.

"No one will mind."

"Not all the people on Ai'Tuoh were gods. But it's a good theory. many of the islands have been uninhabited and eventually if it goes on that way we will have met more gods than people..."

A giant god for a giant continent. Shion got out his notebook and started jotting things down. Sorry Prompto this is now a theory session.

"We now what happened to the people of Umui. But was Nuidan occupied before? It had all those fields, did Harv create them or are they maintaining what used to belong to a population?"

Shion understands that, much more than he once did. More than he would have if he had never left his world. He's been here nine months and though here isn't perfect, isn't safe it is better and safer than the Tower. Yet the habits he picked up there, the constant level of alertness, the fear, that has not left him.

It's one of the reasons he is being careful with Nezumi, trying not to overwhelm him. Not forcing him into things. He's not sure it's working.

"There's no set time. I don't like routines." That's a lie. Shion loves routines. But they are too... No.6 was regimented and controlled. He's not that person any more. Even the tower, when it was not in chaos, when there were no games, no experiments there was a level of control. Everything happened on a schedule even if the residents were often not privy to it.

It's a matter of defiance to try not to fall into old habits. Something else he is not sure is working.

"But I can let you know over the rock when I start cooking."

Shion can't technically say no one will mind, but Jules isn't going to go into that.

"If you want me to, I'll come."

No matter how bad it might end up, he's pretty sure he's handled worse at some point.

Oh a knife could kill him. A knife was what had nearly ended his life just before he'd met Ushara and Vasili. He isn't any more immune to the power of a knife than anyone else. The knife simply wouldn't be able to reach him in a state to make it useful, especially since he knows it could be coming. Even if he didn't want to shield himself from it completely, a little exertion of power and he could bend it in half. No problem.

"You could certainly try to make me wish I were dead, but trust me, you've got nothing on the Tadara."

His eyes shift from their usual red to a blazing neon color as anger simmers.

"If I'd been planning on trying something, you wouldn't have known before I did it. I certainly wouldn't have been standing around here where anyone could see me."

Nezumi raises a singular brow as if to ask 'if that right'? He's watched Shion for far longer than Shion ever realized. His life was nice and orderly and boring. Part of that is because Shion never knew the truth and even all those years ago, Nezumi could feel the discontentment, but it wasn't the safe routine that seemed to be the problem.

"You don't like schedules, do you? My apologies for trying to mess with your style with something so silly."

Nezumi withdraws the fish and turns it over, letting it cool before he tests it.

"If you get used to saying it like that, they're more likely to lock you away once you go to a more normal place. Rocks aren't normal communication tools." Just in case Shion's forgotten.

"Let me know. If I'm not too busy, I might come."

"I don't trust you. I trust what I know. I know most people don't come to parties so they can stand on the outside and watch. Maybe they're a pervert who's come to watch somebody." Shion? Having a stalker without realizing seems up his alley. He'd probably even offer to help. "Or plan something." An attack? Why? Nezumi doesn't know and he doesn't care. Sometimes, people are just insane. Sometimes, people have motives others never see. The 'why' is not as important as the 'what'.

'Or are you just nervous and shy? If your date stood you up, that's very unfortunate. It's not really the dating scene down there, but it's definitely more adventures than waiting on the sidelines."

The silky-sweet voice disappears.

"I want to see what's inside of your pockets."

"Dunno. I don't see why a god would need all that stuff, but gods are kinda weird and fickle. Seemed kinda like stuff humans would do, though? If a god was doing it just because, it might be a little weird to copy humans so closely."

As far as he saw. He saw no use that a god would have for any of it.

"Then again, I guess it's probably like home. Like, some gods probably like humans and some probably hate them, and some will probably try to help and some will try to kill us?"

Shion nodded, "Aster will be happy to see you and you've come this far at least." He gestures down to the party. He knows that Dagger isn't comfortable with so many people but he will stay near him while they go down, Shion truly doubts anyone will protest to his presence, but if they do they will need to go through Shion.

"There were gods back on your world?"

That was interesting, Shion flicked to a page that was already full of information. His notebook is organised as well as it can be, he has sections on other worlds and with there being a few from worlds similar to Prompto's, it practically has it's own section.

"Were they like the ones here? I mean physically present and seen by humans?"

"I think that would be the least of it, if I got to somewhere normal."

He had been prepared when they left the tower to return to a world that wouldn't know it had been dead for two and a half years. But really... Shion doubts his ability to fit back into anywhere... even near normal.

He's learned these last few months that even though he escaped the tower it doesn't mean everything is magically alright. He still wakes in mindless terror from nightmares every night, still lives on a knife edge expecting the worst to happen. There's almost a... relief every time everything does go wrong here, like the world is proving him right.

Perhaps that's how Nezumi has always been. More evidence that Shion had not been ready for the real world. Had not been strong enough. Would never be strong enough.

"I will. You don't have to... But you will always be welcome."

It's a hard line to straddle, he doesn't want to stifle Nezumi, doesn't want to scare him off.

For Shion and Aster Jules will do it. He follows along, keeping his face as neutral as possible. Nobody would likely recognize that he's trying not to scream. He certainly doesn't look excited, but neutral is okay. It's the best he can do too.

Jules rolls his eyes and holds up his left hand before pointing at his ring.

"I'm married, chizzi, and I'm stralen for my wife. Definitely not dating someone else."

Really, all of that had been humorous and Jules had been willing to play along. At least until Nezumi started to make demands. A fanged smile spreads across his face.

"I would love to see you try that. Go ahead. Give it a whirl. I'm just a pansy-assed piece of shit anyway. You should be able to pull it off."

Shion did learn. The world didn't normally change overnight, and even when it did, people couldn't expect to erase all the pain and the lessons the hurt taught them. In his future, when the walls fall, Nezumi's walls remain in place. He can't just be around normal people and expect to live a normal life. He sees that in himself. A hand on your shoulder in Shion's (old) world could mean a simple need for directions. In Nezumi's world, it could be a hand pulling you into a more secluded area. The need to fight for your life is so ingrained into him now that expecting him to fit into normalcy is really asking him to try and hide the ticking time bomb inside; it will, eventually, explode. That's what the future version of himself hopes to defuse. They'll still be danger outside of the walls, but not in the same way. Nezumi needs a middle ground until he can fit into Shion's life.

But despite himself and his lessons, Nezumi never wanted Shion to live that kind of life. He wanted him stronger because he wanted Shion to survive, but he never wanted the white-haired boy to have horror fill his very bones. For all of his confidence and strength, Nezumi's desire to survive is really only living a life of fear. Even in the Western District, he tried to keep Shion from dealing with that in the same way. Nezumi told him the lessons he'd had the learn the hard way, he'd given him safe shelter, and he'd even offered him the food he never asked Shion to work for.

Not even Nezumi could have predicted the Tower. Not even Nezumi could have prevented it.

"Stop that. I'm not some frightened mouse you'll scare away."

Using his knife, Nezumi slices off a piece of fish and tosses it Shion's way. He'll catch it, or it will fall to the ground.

"I won't come until you ask with more confidence." Nezumi places a gloved hand on his throat, giving a dainty gesture. "I prefer confidence in a man."

Suddenly, despite the seriousness of the conversation, Nezumi starts to laugh. It's a soft sound, but it sounds sincere. Then again, Nezumi is an actor.

"You're right, my apologies. I am accusing you of planning some kind of crime, but it would be very disrespectful of me to think you'd cheat on your wife."

The chuckle dies down, but Nezumi's steely eyes never leave his face. He doesn't trust this man. Nezumi won't hesitate to murder him, but he doesn't murder without reason. He doesn't even fight if it's not the best course of action. Survival trumps everything, even pride.

Besides, Shion is here. The scuffle will draw attention.

"While I'm sure your self-depreciation attempts are true, I'll do your wife a favor and hold off unless you decide to try something. Then, I won't have any mercy."

"Humans. You and your pure acceptance of cheating and how often it apparently happens in your culture without any real consequences is baffling."

If he cheated on Ushara she would literally rip his heart out and have every right to. No male cheated on a female. Females cheating on their males is slightly more tolerated, but even so it's incredibly rare.

"She will be so incredibly grateful, I'm sure. As will Shion. He wouldn't want to see you hurt."

Normally Jules would say dead, but he isn't willing to do that to a friend of Shion's no matter how much the guy irritates him.

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Happy Birthday Aster

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