Work Text:
Desire knows a little bit about love, romantic love. Well, being honest, they know a lot about it. But it’s not their fault as the emotion is so connected with their realm. That doesn’t mean that love is connect with only physical desire; there aren’t exclusive. But love in its core is the desire of being with the other being until they become one with them.
Such a fragile thing is love. Volatile and changing. It could be dangerous and even lethal. Without precaution, love could consume you or become an obsession. Either way, it could lend you to a tragic end like it happened to his dear Orpheus, his beloved nephew.
Desire knows better before letting themselves be blind by it, by love. It’s ironical that they of all the Endless is the one who doesn’t underestimate the feeling or let themselves be its prey. Well, with the exception of Destiny but boring oldest brother keeps himself for everything and everyone so, he doesn’t count.
They had used the emotion to harm their proudest and stubborn brother. He won’t deny it. It had been glorious to see him suffered so many times (No one else of their siblings give them such as entertainment like Morpheus). However, his older brother continues to be himself, an asshole. At least, they have the consolation that love has marked him for the eternity since an Endless love forever and his pain will remain.
…
…
…
That was the reason that, as they’ve always kept tabs in their brother’s relationships, they were surprised when the flame of his brother’s desire sparked up as well as the human called Robert Gadling. A Human! A human! My dear brother didn’t learn his lessons, did he?
And even his preference had gotten worst with times. That human was so ordinary and it even stinker than the average human in this point human history. He dressed like a beggar and he looked like he needed a shower. Yet, their brother looked at him like it was the fascinating thing the universe. Desire couldn’t figure out their conversation without letting Dream know that they were being spied by them. Then, nothing happened. Their brother left without action on his feelings, the prudish thing probably didn’t even know what he felt and ignored the desire of the human.
Nevertheless, love in human is something so ephemeral. Human are creature of desire and they easily give their heart but they also change their mind really quick. Love for them is so fragile as a flame of a candle. With time, it would be snuffed for existence. So, it was probably a fling that Gadling would overcomer it. After all is not the first mortal that had had a contact with the King of Dreams.
Later on, they noticed that Gadling’s desire didn’t disappear and that his lifespan was larger than the average. Hence, they decided to look for them in the mortal world and they found out a treasure. That human couldn’t die or age., chosen to be spare of their big sister gift and marked by his older brother. What a peculiar thing! There is not surprise that they hid them for them!
In addition, Robert “Hob” Gadling desired to live so much and enjoying a lot of it. Even the harsher parts of life. Magnificent creature! He lived, he desired, he suffered, he loved and, more important, he continued wishing for more. He should be mine! No Dream’s!
Dream would never value it. Not that Desire wanted him but a creature like that belonged to their realm. Not The Dreaming. Also, they had to admitted that they envied the devotion this human had for their brother. Being fair, something that Desire sometimes is not, Hob loved deeply and when he loved something he seemed to kept in his heart for ever like his late wife and children, his son and the stillborn baby that died before having a chance to live. Yet, Dream didn’t deserve that devotion or adoration, the asshole. For that reason, they kept an eye in the immortal human.
Luckily for Desire, they didn’t have to intervene to ruin their brother’s chance of happiness. The pride and pettiness of the other endless did it for them. They laughed as they watched him raced out of that tavern in 1889. Poor Gadling! What was his crime? Called Dream a friend! At least the mortal wasn’t as afraid to acknowledged their feelings like their brother.
Desire almost pitied him. Then Hob smiled when he saw their twin appeared at his side to accompany him in his misery. Strange creature! Hopefully, that broken heart would stop desiring for Dream as it had been crushed. Dream would never know what he had lost…
…
…
…
…Hob Gadling proved them wrong and that was unforgettable. Desire liked the man but he was stubborn and he continued desiring and loving Dream. The worst thing was that his desire wasn’t corrupted or turning in an obsession. He just loved Dream, pure as that. Fucking Pathetic!
Almost like Dream who was, at the moment, kept imprisoned by an amateur warlock. Yes, Desire and The Corinthian had played a part but it was still pathetic that the prideful of Dream of the Endless was trapped in a glass cell. Poetic! So, he stopped caring for Hob Gadling as their brother dearest wouldn’t be out of his prison soon.
…
…
…
Then, almost one hundred years after their brother “disappearing”, Desire noticed a disturbance in the human world. Someone was looking actively for their brother. Desire shouldn’t have to be surprised by the fact that it was Robert fucking Gadling. Not after they knew how deeply his feelings for their brother ran. He isn’t going to spoil my fun!
So, they kept him distracted with false leads. False impulses and compulsions that would keep him away. However, the human didn’t desist. Consequently, Desire decided to tempting him with an old hex, one that related the way of making a deal with a demon, since it would be fun to condemn his brother’s pet to eternal suffering…But Despair saved him because she had a fondness for him as well as Death and Delirium. Betrayed by their own twin! What did this human have that their siblings seemed to orbit around him!
They let him be for the moment as favour to their beloved twin. They often shared drinks together, Desire hadn’t ever seen her so content. Also, the human rescued their former sister-in-law, Calliope, and set her free. She was the mother of dear Orpheus so; Desire was happy to see her out of pain. It wasn’t her fault that she had so bad taste in partners. He even helped her heal.
Unfortunately, Hob was getting to closed to discover the truth of Dream location and, if he shared it with Calliope, they would probably success freeing him. Desire wouldn’t do anything to him that could harm him for the eternity but they had to keep him away. As result, they took the decision to visit him.
They waited for him in his bed, naked. They knew Hob’s preference as a bisexual man. Pansexual? Omnisexual since he likes Dream?! Nevertheless, the human rejected them and tried to run away of them. How dare he? Obviously, they didn’t let him.
Having him under them was a delicious experience. They could appreciate his strong physic and beauty. They wanted to ravish him but the man resisted them. He even treated to harm them when he discovered the truth. The impertinent human! There was no way to negotiate with him, not that Desire really tried to, hence they took him and brought him to their realm.
…
…
…
Hob Gadling’s pleasure and misery is beautiful. There isn’t something as satisfactory to be by his side as he suffers under his own desires’ hands. Desire wants to touch him and they sometimes do. The taste of his skin is delicious and, even in his overstimulated state, Hob is a good lover.
His lips are soft and his body is warm. Desire has had a lot of lovers but Hob was out of the ordinary. Only shameful thing is that he isn’t conscious enough to watch to who he is giving pleasure and receiving from. Desire and pleasure are better when they are freely given but the Endless doesn’t complain too much.
“Free him, beloved sibling” Despair comes to them a decade after they took Hob for the mortal realm. “Please”.
“Would you take him to your realm, Sister mine?” Desire asks.
“No, he belongs to the mortal world”, Despair responds honestly, “He is my friend, Desire”, She adds.
“You know why I am keeping him here, sis”, they reply, “You wouldn’t ruin my fun, would you?”
“Free him before Death and Delirium discover that you take him as he is their friend too”, Despair says. “You cannot face Death”, she warns.
“Death wouldn’t come here just for a simple mortal”, Desire retorts.
“Hob is our friend”, Despair repeats and the doubt starts to grown in Desire.
Their own twin is facing them for a human! They are being treat for it! What interesting thing is happening? Would be possible that Delirium and Death act to defend him for them? Delirium, yes! Death, perhaps?!
“Let him be found by Calliope”, Despair offers, “She has been looking for him all these years”. They considerate it. “It will take time for him to recover and Calliope wont talk with our sisters as you know”, she points out. “Therefore, no one would suspect of you”.
“And how do you know of his presence here?” Desire questions her and she just arches an eyebrow, “Oh! His misery and despair! Of Course!”. Desire sighs. “Okay, I would let Calliope find him and break out…for you”
After all, it would be hilarious to see the man, who was ready to fight them in his brother’s name, break after his stay in Desire’s realm. All his senses overloaded and, after experiencing all the pleasures of the world extremely, life would be a misery for him. Might be, He would ask for their sister’s gift after it and Morpheus would lose something precious to him by Desire’s hand, again.