Chapter Text

Chapter Text

Chapter Text

Chapter Text

On the whole, life was starting to be on the up and up for Aventurine.

After coming back from Penacony with nothing more than a light slap on the wrist (he got a demotion and he’s on a probation to see if he deserves a replacement Cornerstone) for the, frankly, fucking audacious gamble he made with his life and his Cornerstone (he nearly fucked off into the void of Nihility and died), he also managed to score some well earned time (he isn’t sure if it counts as suspension or medical leave) off. Time well spent with one Doctor Veritas Ratio, aka his new boyfriend, aka the man who was now lovingly rearranging his guts on a regular basis (not that he wasn’t before, but the lovingly part was definitely new, as was the regular part).

Oh, and he was still alive too, which was probably good.

In all honesty, he really did think that he was going to die when he was sent to Penacony. For what it was worth, he almost did. The life and times of Kakavasha “Aventurine” of the Avgins, all thirty something miserable years of them, didn’t amount to even a blip in the grand, cosmic scheme of things. His sad tale would fade into dust and blow away into the stellar winds, and that was perfectly fine with him.

After talking with the Emanator of Nihility and his child self, he had bid them farewell and walked into the void, following the path of the dark river that flowed on endlessly from some point of the far horizon. He wasn’t sure what he was looking for entirely — it wasn’t as if the Primordial Dreamscape just had a door he could go through. If that was the case, he wouldn’t have had to go through all this mess in the first place. Maybe the last question he should have asked that Emanator before she left was for her to give him a map to this place. Seriously, was there anything here other than darkness?!

He wasn’t sure for how long he had been walking around in the darkness, but eventually, he must have passed out, because when he came to, it was in another man’s bed.

Not entirely unfamiliar, but the fact that he still had all his clothes on and that there was a noted lack of dried bodily fluids on him was a nice surprise. His head still hurt like a bitch though. Wasn’t being in a dream supposed to mean you couldn’t get hangovers, or at the very least, headaches?

He’d had his mind invaded by that feathered Harmony freak, forced to confront some of his worst childhood traumas and insecurities, slashed to oblivion by an Emanator, and now, he had a headache. Just great. He’s definitely leaving a zero star review for Penacony after this. Whoever said it was a premium vacation spot was a big fat liar.

“Ah, my good sir, you have awoken?”

What followed was possibly one of the most confusing sequences of events in his life.

According to that red haired Knight of Beauty who had found him, Aventurine had been face down floating along a river of Nihility water, and being the compassionate and righteous spirit that he was, had very kindly picked him up out of it and taken him back to his ship to recover.

He did not explain how he had ended up in that space that Aventurine had literally died to get to, nor did he explain how he had gotten out. Aventurine did not ask him. Some things in this world were better left unknown.

The Knight of Beauty had dropped him off in some dingy, off brand version of what looked like the Golden Hour before leaving. He had apologised profusely to Aventurine that he could not stay to oversee his recovery, but gave him his number and asked him to send a message when he was back to relative health, or safety. One of the two.

In any case, he had picked himself up, dusted himself off as he always did whenever things went horrifically lucky in his life, and proceeded to deal with the events in the only way he knew how.

He went to the nearest local bar, and got absolutely shitfaced.

What had happened after that was much more blurry. The bartender probably cut him off eventually, and by the time he had woken up, dazed and disoriented, but more of the hangover kind, he had found that he had more or less missed all the action, including but not limited to the crew of the Astral Express driving a manifestation of their beloved train right into Sunday-the-Harmony-freak’s face. Apparently the man’s own sister had been there too, just to spit in his SoulGlad a little more. Damn. What he wouldn’t give to have seen that with his own eyes.

Still, as much as he would have liked to stick around longer in that place, which, as he eventually found out, was called Dreamflux Reef, and a part of the Primordial Dreamscape, there were matters that demanded his attention in the real world. Even if he had rather recently acquired a will to live, he was pretty sure dreams only counted as the trial version, and not the real thing.

And so, Aventurine woke up dazed and disoriented once again, half submerged in the glowing water of the Reverie hotel’s Dreampools.

The first thing that he was aware of was that hangovers acquired in the Dreamscape did not carry over to reality, which was probably the only good thing to happen to him in the very shit day he was currently having in his very shit life.

The second thing that he was aware of was someone holding his hand.

He had cracked his eyes open, and was met with the very shocked face of one Doctor Veritas Ratio, clinging onto his hand for dear life.

“Oh, Ratio, you’re still here? I honestly thought you’d be gone by… now…” He croaked out.

He had expected Ratio to respond in that snappish way of his whenever he found one of Aventurine’s quips a little too annoying, but instead, the man was silent. Actually, he hadn’t expected anyone to be there at all, least of all Ratio. In the expected event that he was to die in the Dreamscape, he had even left a generous tip as an apology-slash-therapy payment for the inevitable Reverie hotel staff member that would find his body and be traumatised from it, because the rest of Strategic Investments sure as hell wouldn’t care.

Fuck. This day could not get any weirder. Why wasn’t Ratio saying anything?

Oh right.

“Hah… I gotta thank you doc. I got your note you know… what was it again? Do stay alive? I wish you the best of luck? Something like that right?” Aventurine lied. Of course he wasn’t going to forget what that note said. It was just a shame that that note was stuck in the Dreamscape with no way of being transferred to the real world.

Ratio was still silent.

“Uh… Doc?”

And then, Ratio kissed him.

When he was young, some other Avgin who had been travelling for days at a time were sometimes unfortunate enough to not encounter any water at all. This had not been an issue for him and his sister, who had always managed to find some when they needed it most. It was part of his blessing, perhaps. But whenever he had seen those other Avgin, or when the two of them had run into them and shared their waterskins with them, they would always drink like their lives depended on it—because they did.

Ratio kissed him like he was dying of thirst, and the only thing that could bring him back to life was Aventurine’s lips.

Aventurine’s mind blanked out completely.

He knew what Ratio’s kisses felt like, and they were not ever like—

This.

Even if it was on instinct, he kissed back. Ratio’s hands slid up his arms to tangle in Aventurine’s hair, pulling him closer, and in the time it took for him to let out an inadvertent moan, Ratio had taken that as an opportunity to deepen the kiss further, slipping his tongue into Aventurine’s mouth.

What happened next was a lot more of a blur, but Aventurine didn’t think he could be blamed for forgetting. For one, he had just died and come back to life, gotten blackout drunk, and then woken up to have the man who he might be coming to realise he loved kiss him back into reality like he was living some kind of fairy tale. A shitty one, of course, because things like these just didn’t happen—

At least, that’s what he thought.

At some point, Ratio had lifted him from the Dreampool and carried him to the bed. At some point, their clothes had ended up on the ground. At some point, a bottle of lube was opened, and—yup, that was definitely Ratio’s fingers opening him up while his other hand was fisted around Aventurine’s cock. That was a feeling he couldn’t forget no matter how hard he tried.

“Uh, doc, you know… I’m starting to get the feeling—ngh! T-that you don’t actually hate me,” Aventurine had said, like Ratio wasn’t balls deep in him with his cock so far up his ass that he almost swore he felt it in the back of his throat.

“Is that so,” Ratio had said, like he hadn’t spent the last twenty minutes kissing Aventurine so hard that he almost died and returned to the void of Nihility again, and then the last ten minutes after that bringing Aventurine to completion on his fingers before replacing them with something much bigger. What the fuck. Was he sure he still wasn’t dreaming? Since when did the good doctor kiss like that?

Ratio had leaned down, and when his breath had ghosted over the shell of his ear, Aventurine had shivered, even though he felt like he was burning hotter than a sun. “It seems I shall have to try harder.” That had been punctuated by a forceful thrust that had nailed him right on the prostate and had ripped a loud moan from Aventurine’s lips.

“After all, my dear gambler, if you have the time to think still, then I must make myself clearer.”

And with that, Ratio proceeded to make himself very clear. So clear, in fact, that by the end of it all, Aventurine was too fucked out to even remember where he had been going with his initial statement.

So yeah. The reunion sex was great. Really great. Easily in the top three of all fucks he’s had, though considering the absolute shitfest of all of the ones in the past that didn’t involve Ratio, the bar was pathetically low.

Damn. He really needed to raise his standards, didn’t he?

Dealing with that Galaxy Ranger and the Masked Fool afterwards was… considerably less great, but with it resolving itself fairly neatly and with the knowledge that someone else out there despised Oswaldo Schneider as much as he did, that was enough for him to bid Penacony a (not so) fond farewell and enjoy his well earned vacation time.

His vacation time… and his…. boyfriend?

They had talked about it, more or less, on the ship back to Pier Point. Aventurine wasn’t so sure he could say they literally talked—a lot of crying had been involved, and it wasn’t the sexy kind either. But Ratio had held him through it all, wiped away the tears on his face as tenderly as he did dust on his stone bust, and kissed him gently. Like Aventurine was fragile. Like he could break at the lightest touch.

And Aventurine…let himself break.

Broken bones healed wrong needed to be rebroken for them to heal properly.

Aventurine let himself break apart in Ratio’s arms, and let the man put him back together— surgically, precisely, and with so much care it could overflow.

And somehow, that was that. They were no longer coworkers who tolerated each other at best and betrayed each other at worst, who also fucked sometimes because they were undeniably attracted to another and needed a physical outlet to vent that, but genuine, bonafide lovers who did all those things couples normally did, like cohabitate, kiss each other goodbye on the way to work, have a single shared account, and took care of children together.

Well. If cats that were also cakes that were also cats counted as children. And they didn’t have a single shared account. In Ratio’s own words, he didn’t trust Aventurine to not gamble away their life’s savings even if he was practically guaranteed to get a huge return on it.

Aventurine felt like that was a bit of a moot point, really. Ratio would trust Aventurine with his life to the point that they managed to flawlessly pull off their plan in Penacony together with minimal communication, but not with his money, apparently. Who out of the two of them was the one who actually worked in the finance and business field?

He had told Ratio that to his face, and was summarily met with a stone bust that despite its blank expression, exuded an air of disgruntlement. In the end, they settled for a compromise, and opened one anyway while keeping their own. If Ratio ever noticed that shared account tripling in holdings overnight, or adding on funds at an exponential rate, then he at least had the common courtesy of pretending like it didn’t happen while he reset it back to a normal level by purchasing some extravagant manner of goods that would turn up in their shared home a few days later.

But they really did do everything else. All the disgusting domesticity, sickening softness, horrific homeliness that came with a committed relationship—it was as close to normal as two high profile individuals who were frequently called to all manners of places across the universe to stick their noses in where it wasn’t wanted could get.

They had matching mugs and sleepwear sets. By great Gaiathra, they had matching mugs and sleepwear sets. If he wasn’t so taken with the man, he might actually have thrown up a little in his mouth because of it.

They had already been seriously dating for several months at that point, and one week before the new term rolled over at the University of Veritas Prime, Aventurine had stood in the middle of their (their!!!) living room with the snacks running over his slippered feet, holding a mug of softly steaming coffee, and come to the abrupt conclusion that he was completely fucked, in all meanings of the word.

He felt like that guy who had gotten a concussion from an apple dropping on his head and then went on to invent gravity. What was his name again? Ratio must have mentioned it in passing at some point, but Aventurine had already forgotten. Spewton? Newman? Something like that. He certainly felt like a new man after coming to the sudden revelation that he was in this relationship for the long haul.

Ratio was in his study reviewing lesson plans for the upcoming semester when Aventurine threw open the door with a loud bang. To his credit, he didn’t even look annoyed when he looked up, already used to Aventurine’s penchant for theatrics after however many months they spent living together. All he did was set down his pen and look at Aventurine over the top of his glasses. Damn it. Why did he look so good in glasses?

“Yes, darling?” He said, raising a brow. Damn it again. He also didn’t know when that started, but it gave him an unfair advantage against Aventurine. He couldn’t believe his boyfriend was such a sore loser that he had to resort to underhanded tactics like these to get one up over him.

“You’ve been trying to get me to move in with you,” Aventurine accused, striding over to Ratio’s desk to slam his hands down threateningly on it. That was what people generally did, right? Maybe he should have put more force into it. He wasn’t going to mention that at this point, he already had practically moved in. The only thing left in his apartment at Pier Point was the bed and probably some Basic Ingredients getting mouldy in the back of his cupboards. It was the principle of the whole thing though.

“You have been living here ever since we returned from Penacony,” Ratio replied. “I simply assumed that was what you intended from the beginning, given that you made no attempts to indicate otherwise. I have not tried to do anything.”

“That’s not true,” Aventurine said.

It was absolutely true. He just didn’t want to admit it.

On that first night after leaving Penacony, he had been too emotionally drained for Ratio to leave him alone out of the fear that he’d do something reckless again (there was a bar in one of the Pier Point Shopping Street’s back alleys that was calling his name), and had shuffled the both of them back to Aventurine’s Pier Point apartment to try and rest and recover from space-lag.

The key word was try, there, because Aventurine had woken up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat and a bitten off scream on his lips, his heart thudding painfully in his chest from a nightmare he was already starting to forget.

There was movement at his side.

It was Ratio, because of course it was. He wasn’t wearing a shirt, if only for the fact that he didn’t have any clean sleepwear, and all of Aventurine’s were too small for him. A hand groped around in the darkness for his, and finding it, linked both their fingers together.

“You had a nightmare?” Roughshod with sleep, Ratio’s voice was even deeper than it normally was.

“It’s nothing. Don’t worry about it. Go back to sleep.”

“Hm.”

Ratio pulled him close, and looped his arms around him. He smelled like Aventurine’s soaps and shampoos, and it comforted him more than he cared to admit.

Ratio kissed the top of his head.

“You should also, my dear gambler,” he murmured. “I have you, and you have me. I will still be here when the morning comes.”

Aventurine closed his eyes. When he finally fell asleep to the sound of Ratio’s steady heartbeat, he did not wake until the rays of the morning sun slanted through his blinds and fell across his face.

And just as he had said, Ratio was there at his side, his arm curled loosely around his waist and his dark hair fanned out across the pillows.

That was the first, and only night they had spent at Aventurine’s place at Pier Point since Penacony.

The very next morning, Ratio had bustled around his apartment, shoving things into travel bags, complaining all the while, and dragged Aventurine back to the spaceport to take the next ship out to Veritas Prime.

What he had thought was going to be a fun sleepover (that they probably, hopefully, were going to fuck during) turned into a week. And then two weeks. And then a month. The nightmares didn’t stop, but having Ratio there helped. When the IPC finally remembered he was technically on their payroll and as such, entitled to certain employee benefits like their subsidised medical care, arranged for a Doctor of Chaos to check up on him after his brush with Nihility, the current address that he gave them was the one of Ratio’s place on Veritas Prime. He didn’t even think too deeply on it at the time, just that he thought it would be easier than having to shuttle back and forth from here to Pier Point.

And then one time, Aventurine had mentioned a little offhandedly that he thought the neighbour’s cat that he often saw sunning itself on the balcony was cute, and then Ratio had disappeared for a few days with only a note left to say that he was going off planet for ‘research’, whatever that meant. When he came back, the first thing he did was shove a tower of cakes…? Cats? Cake cats?? Into Aventurine’s arms and stumbled through some explanation that had too many scientific terms for him to understand properly but basically amounted to ‘they’re ours now, we’re taking care of them.’

Bit by bit, more things started turning up in the house. They bought matching items. They opened an account together. Ratio would fuck him until his legs felt like jelly and then carry him to the bathroom after to wash him off and wash his hair too. They even went on dates and romantic getaways. Kind of.

One time, the Guild invited Ratio out to some planet or whatever for a conference, and he brought Aventurine with him, if only because the conference was held on some resort planet with nice beaches and fine weather for ninety percent of their entire year. Now that place was good. Every day was a chance for him to run his grubby little paws all over Ratio’s shirtless body — “Oh, hold on babe, I think I missed a spot—“, “You have been ‘missing’ spots for fifteen minutes now. Just put the damned sunblock on, Aventurine.” — and he was still just a man. A very happy man, but still just a man.

In any case, yes. All of that was to say that they were indeed doing ‘the dating thing’, as people put it, and that unlike a great deal of things in Aventurine’s life, this one seemed to be sticking. Quite unfortunately, too.

Ratio got up from behind his desk, and in a few smooth strides, crossed the distance between him and the other side of the desk to pull Aventurine into his arms. He instantly went as limp as a wet noodle. Aeons, he was so pathetic. Ratio sighed, but still dragged the two of them over to the couch that he kept in his study, sitting down and arranging Aventurine in his lap. He nosed at a spot at Aventurine’s neck just under his ear, and Aventurine hooked his arms over his boyfriend’s shoulders.

“This is totally unfair. You’re being totally unfair.” He complained, and Ratio huffed against his ear.

“Mm. That’s where you’re wrong, my darling. All’s fair in love and war.”

“This isn’t war, what are you even talking about?”

Ratio’s arms snuck around his waist, and one of his hands slipped under the oversized shirt he was wearing (Ratio’s, of course, because the same didn’t apply to Aventurine who could, and did, borrow Ratio’s clothes whenever he liked) to splay against his stomach. Just like the rest of him, Ratio’s hands were huge. And they were also warm, and they were a comforting weight against his skin. Aw, fuck. Of course this wasn’t a war, because even though Aventurine was fighting for his life, he was losing utterly and spectacularly.

“Well then, dear gambler. Try and move back out now, and see if I stop you.”

What did he say? Unfair. Saying that when he knew full well that he was past the point of leaving… there was no way that Aventurine could deny that.

“Ugh. I hate you.”

Aventurine sighed, and let himself droop into his boyfriend’s arms, pulling both of them into leaning back against the couch.

If things could stay like this, then maybe it wasn’t so bad that they were living together after all.

“No, that’s a lie. I… really love you, actually,” he said quietly.

And that was true. All the hardships he had gone through in his life, the pain and the horrors—ever since he was young, he had been told to never resent them, because he was the lucky child, golden child of the clan, that would lead them to happiness. But now the clan was gone, and the only one left was him.

Still, in a way, he had managed to find his own happiness.

Ratio’s arms tightened around him in a comforting hug.

“And I you, my dearest Kakavasha.”

It was while they were in the bath that Ratio brought up the topic. This… was also one of the things that they did together as a couple. Take baths together. Ratio did have a nice bathtub after all, and it was a shame not to use it for its intended, and sometimes, unintended, purpose.

There, pressed chest to back in the warm soapy water, Aventurine let out a soft sigh of bliss as Ratio lathered shampoo into his hair.

“If you are still on leave from work, perhaps you might like to come visit me at my work some time,” Ratio said suddenly. He said it extremely casually, in the same tone that someone might say to their partner that they were out of coffee beans, or that they were going to be late coming home in a few days, or even — “Don’t be ridiculous. If you aren’t capable of staying put of your own volition, then I shall simply fuck you until you are unable to walk.” In Aventurine’s experience, if any of his boyfriend’s Ratio-isms started off in that tone, then there was a fifty-fifty chance it wasn’t something he actually had to worry about—and in a fifty-fifty scenario, he still ended up winning one hundred percent of the time anyway.

“What, like, at the Guild?” He tried to crane his neck around to look back at Ratio, but the man clicked his tongue and firmly, although gently, set his hands on either side of Aventurine’s head to snap it back to face the front.

“No, darling. At the university.”

Oh, shit.

Oh, shit.

This was really happening, then. It wasn’t enough that they had to live together and had pets and everything, they had moved into the stage of visiting each other at work. For fun. For each other, and not just because Jade had CC’d him into attending another stuffy meeting in some Pier Point office somewhere and Yabuli or whoever it was who was Ratio’s boss at the Guild had CC’d him into the same. Those meetings always ended up with them excusing themselves to go for a quickie or two though, so at least they weren’t totally boring all the time.

Wait. Didn’t Ratio have an office at the University? Could he and Ratio fuck at the University? No, never mind that, why was he assuming that he’d even go in the first place? Universities were for smart people, like Ratio and well-adjusted kids from developed planets who actually went to proper schools. He was just some joke of a gambling addict from a backwater planet pretending to be a businessman.

“It’s occurred to me that soon I will be away for hours at a time, and I don’t particularly wish to leave you alone at home the entire time, even if you have the snacks for company. Doctor Erebus also recommended you don’t spend all of your time cooped up inside, if I recall,” Ratio continued. Seemingly unaware of Aventurine’s rapidly downwardly spiraling thought process, he rinsed out the suds from Aventurine’s hair and reached for the conditioner.

Doctor Erebus was the Doctor of Chaos the IPC had assigned to Aventurine, and she was a total bore. You’d think that someone who was always fighting for others to experience the joie de vivre of life, or however the term was used, they would be equally as interesting, but no. She was nice enough, but talking with her always left Aventurine feeling like he needed to go back to sleep—and he already had enough of that in Penacony to last a lifetime.

Ratio liked her plenty though. Enough to latch onto every word she said, and parrot it back to Aventurine whenever he was being difficult like he wasn’t an owl and instead some third rate Lushakan animal mascot knockoff. The worst part is that she easily gave into giving him advice on how to best help Aventurine. Patient-doctor confidentiality had truly died a miserable death.

Ah, whatever. He wasn’t actually mad at Ratio. He was just trying to help, after all.

“Uh, I’ll… think about it…” Aventurine mumbled, poking at a floating rubber duck. It bobbed along the surface of the bathwater, and in that moment, he briefly wished that he was that duck. Nothing in life to worry about, just floating along in the warm water of a very handsome (and naked) man’s bath.

Fuck.

It wasn’t that serious, was it?

Ratio’s apartment was about fifteen minutes away from the campus of Veritas Prime. He walked to and from work, whenever he wasn’t called off planet to do the Intelligentsia Guild’s, or the IPC’s dirty work. Actually, that wasn’t completely true. He was also invited to conferences and other smart people things, but usually during the academic term of Veritas Prime, he tried to stay there as much as he could, to varying degrees of success.

Aventurine had previously entertained the thought of randomly visiting Ratio while he was at the university before, while they were still getting to know each other, but he never had the balls to follow through on it. Despite what many people thought, his humiliation kink was situational, and he didn’t think that standing in an auditorium full of bright eyed young scholars and their genius teacher himself fell into that category.

Things had obviously changed since then, with the most obvious of the lot being that he was now officially dating that genius teacher, and he still had a lot of free time these days. It wasn’t necessarily that he was bored during the day, because Ratio had been there for him to mess around with, and it was always interesting to see what cash grabs daytime television producers would come up with. He was still holding out hope that Biancalatte from I Love You Like The Rhapsody Of The Stars would get out of her situationship with her best friend. He’d find out by the end of the week if she did or not, but personally, he was already expecting the worst. If there was anything those hack producers knew how to do, it was how to drag out a plot line.

“The semester begins in a week. I will be sure to leave you a copy of my timetable if you should like to see it.” Ratio said primly. Was Aventurine just imagining it, but was there something like warmth and pride in his tone as well? Fuck again. Had Ratio somehow taken his answer as a confirmation?

….Who was he kidding. Of course he had. Now Aventurine really had to show up at some point. Sure, he might be a major disappointment in all other areas of his life, but those were standards he held to himself, and didn’t include his boyfriend. If there was one thing that he had learned after coming back from Penacony, it was that he really hated disappointing Ratio.

Things really had changed. The sight of a disappointed Ratio was something like seeing a depressed dog, ears folded down and all droopy. It just wasn’t right. With anyone else, he would have been snippy, but with Aventurine, he was completely different. It had something to do with his standards for Aventurine, and Aventurine hated it.

There was once a time in his life where he didn’t give two shits what Ratio thought (actually, he did, but he did things anyway and just lived with the shame of Ratio’s disappointment hanging over him) and now, he was practically falling over himself to keep his boyfriend happy.

…Fucking hell, he really was pathetic. Living with Ratio really had softened him up. He wasn’t any better than the overthinking ridden female leads in those daytime soaps he’d been watching so much. At least he could say he had gotten out of his own situationship though, so he was doing better than them in that regard.

Warm water coursed down his head as Ratio washed out the conditioner. Aventurine closed his eyes, and soon, Ratio’s skilled hands started finger combing through his hair, gently picking through any knots and tangles. It was getting a little long, he thought absently. Enough that he could probably put it into a small ponytail. Or maybe he could grow it out. He did like having his hair pulled as much as Ratio liked pulling it.

Ugh. Whatever. He had a week to think about it. Or rather, not think about it.

“Thanks…”

“Of course, darling. The university is important to me, as are you. Naturally, I would want you to feel welcome.”

Aventurine sank further into the water as Ratio reached for a book.

Yeah, it was official. He was fucked. There was no way he was getting out of this one.

Great Gaiathra, what the hell was Aventurine doing here?

Ah, right.

He’d finally summoned up the courage to visit his boyfriend at work.

His boyfriend who worked at a highly prestigious university.

Who had been expecting him to start showing up, if not for his sake, then for Aventurine’s own. Weren’t there usually rules about these sorts of things? About not bringing unsanctioned visitors onto campus grounds? Ugh, never mind. Even if there was, Aventurine didn’t think that there was anyone in the university who’d argue against the holder of their First Class Honours. See, Ratio? He wasn’t totally useless. He could remember things!

In his defence, things had been going well up until that point. He had made the short walk to campus after checking the directions on his phone, and had soon found himself standing under a tree as students bustled to and fro from their classes. The directions had dropped him off in front of a sleek glass building with neat signage in front of it proclaiming it to be the chemistry building. He was sure that it had its uses, but he really wished that there was some kind of flashing arrow pointing in the right direction of Ratio himself instead, or barring that, at least the man’s office.

Aventurine typed out a message, looked at it, erased it, retyped it, and erased that one too.

Was he a little overdressed? He felt a little overdressed.

He’d put on one of his best pairs of pants, if only because his ass looked great in them and he needed the confidence boost to leave the house.

It would have been different if this was a business meeting. At least then, he could put on the mask of Stoneheart Aventurine, the confident and smooth talking businessman. Right now though… he was nothing more than Ratio’s boyfriend.

There wasn’t anyone out here that he needed to charm or sucker into a business deal. There wasn’t anyone out here that wanted to use him for something either. The only person that he could even remotely consider close to doing so he lived with, and was dating.

Ugh, why hadn’t he taken a proper look at Ratio’s schedule before leaving the house? Now he was stuck here, in the middle of a fancy university campus that he had already made the effort to go out to, and if he turned back now, he’d never be able to live with himself. Remembering things was great, unless it came to things like his boyfriend’s schedule.

Fuck this. He wasn’t going to get any more answers out of staring at his phone. Ratio had been clear enough from the beginning that he didn’t check his phone while he was teaching, and Aventurine knew for a fact that he was right now, just… he didn’t know where, or what.

Instead, he lifted his gaze up to meet the wide eyed stare of a mousy looking student (he hoped they were a student. It would be really embarrassing for him if they weren’t.) He fixed them with his trademark winsome smile. If anything, they seemed to freeze in their tracks. Oh well.

“Hey there, kid!” He started off, giving them a friendly wiggle of his fingers. “You’re a student here, right? You wouldn’t happen to know where Doctor Ratio is right now, would you?”

“D-Doctor Ratio?!” If anything, their eyes seemed to grow even wider. Aventurine had been mostly joking about the part where they were like a mouse, but with how high their voice pitched, he was starting to think otherwise.

“Yep, that’s the one! Unless he has a secret brother or something he hasn’t told me about that’s also here. Is there?”

“I—um, w-well! He might be in his— philosophy lecture right now? I think? I’m—I’m not sure.” They stammered out, and Aventurine hummed thoughtfully.

Philosophy, eh? Aventurine knew philosophy. Sort of. He knew of the copy of Ratio’s book that he kept on a shelf in his office about it. People had said it was a big deal and Ratio’s online fan club couldn’t stop pulling quotes from it, but those sorts of things flew over Aventurine’s head. They loved it. But Aventurine loved the man who wrote the damn thing, so it was probably close enough. He’d figure the rest out on the way.

“Let’s bet on it, then!” He said cheerily, going over to the student to pat them on the shoulder. “I think he’ll be there for sure! Mind leading the way?”

Fuck it.

This wouldn’t be the first time that he was nervous, nor would it be the last. He just had to do what he knew how to do best – take a gamble, and hope that Ratio wouldn’t be too mad at Aventurine for crashing his class. He wouldn’t be, right? He’d practically asked for it anyway. It wasn’t like there was that much difference between showing up in the final stretch of his class than there was in showing up afterwards.

Plus, he might even be able to get a bit of a rise out of his boyfriend from it. Embarrassment was cute on him, and Aventurine didn’t nearly get to see it enough.

Okay, yeah. He could work with this.

Taking out his phone, he sent out a short series of texts to his boyfriend. Ratio wouldn’t see them, but that was fine. And if he did… well, it wouldn’t make a difference either way.

It was time to see what this entire university deal was about.

It wasn’t until the last student had hurried out of the lecture hall that Ratio sighed, and the tense line of his shoulders dropped. His hands came up to carefully cradle Aventurine’s face, and Aventurine leaned into the warmth, setting his own hands over Ratio’s own.

“…Are you alright?” Ratio asked quietly, and Aventurine blinked at him.

He’d been more confused than hurt by the entire thing, if he was being honest. Most people who hurled slurs at him weren’t bold enough to do it in front of others unless they were also in on it. The fact that it had happened right in front of Ratio was even more confusing. Maybe Ratio had a point about what he said about idiots.

He wouldn’t say he wasn’t touched at what Ratio had done for him though. People who would go so far for him were few and in between, although that was also to do with him keeping anyone who might be decent enough to do so at an arm’s length. Mentally, he made a note to see about sending the university some funds for the repair bill. If Ratio wasn’t going to be the responsible one in the relationship about it, then someone had to be.

“Huh? Oh, yeah, I’m fine,” Aventurine said. “No need to worry about me, doc. If I had a credit for every time someone was a racist asshole to me, I’d be— well… I wouldn’t be richer than I am now, but I’d have the same as a good interest payout, haha. Just as constant as it too!”

Ratio’s face crumpled. Shit. Maybe he shouldn’t have said that. He thought that was a good one, though.

“You really are so…” Ratio exhaled. “That isn’t the point, darling. It isn’t right for people to treat you that way.”

Right or not, Aventurine had come to accept that it was an inevitable and inescapable part of his life. In the end, the universe was a vast place, and he had long since reasoned that encounters with people that looked down on him just because of his race would be one off instances and that once he was done with them, he’d never have to see them again.

“Ah, well, that’s just how it is sometimes. There’s nothing either of us can do about it. It could have been worse, even. I’m okay, you’re okay, so… I’m pretty happy about that.”

Ratio shook his head, setting his hands onto Aventurine’s shoulders.

“No, I am not okay. Listen to me, Kakavasha—“ Oh, fuck. Ratio was busting out his real name. Things were more serious for him than Aventurine thought. “—No matter what people may say, I know your love is as genuine as mine, if not more. If you use me at all, then it is because I have allowed you to do so, and not because I am unaware of it. I love you because you are you—smart, kind, strong, and even when you are afraid, you press on regardless. To say to my face that all of that is falsified is an insult beyond comprehension.”

Aventurine opened his mouth to reply, but strangely enough, found that no words would come out. Ratio was gazing down at him, his brows drawn together and the corners of his mouth turned down in dismay. His eyes were just like the dawn, and not for the first time since they had made things official between the two of them, Aventurine came to the startlingly clear realisation that Ratio was deeply, unwisely, in love with him, and that he was truly lucky that he hadn’t supremely fucked things up between the both of them with what he’d pulled in Penacony.

Eventually though, he unstuck his tongue from his mouth, and forced out an awkward laugh.

“Haha, um, well… Let’s not get carried away here…” He said, and Ratio shook his head again, this time sliding his hands down to tangle his fingers in Aventurine’s own.

“Nonsense. I promise you, for as long as I am an educator, I refuse to let such asinine behaviour promulgate within my classrooms. As long as I continue to work towards curing the universe of idiocy, then I must also endeavour to right these… these… small minded views that continue to persist within the cosmos. Beginning with making it clear that such views are not tolerated anywhere within my vicinity.”

“That’s.. that’s a big ask…” Aventurine stammered.

“Not to me. Not if it’s you.”

Oh, dear Goddess. Aventurine was way in over his head.

“...You really don’t have to do that for me, Veritas,” he said weakly. “I know better than anyone that people like that won’t ever change their minds…”

“I do. Besides, do I not owe it to you to try?”

“I…”

His words failed him again, and this time, Ratio seemed to take it for what it was. He leant down to place a kiss on Aventurine’s forehead before stepping back and attempting a reassuring smile. It looked awkward on him, like he wasn’t used to doing it, but Aventurine couldn’t care less. Besides, it wouldn’t help either of them for him to say it out loud.

“It’s alright. Don’t force yourself,” Ratio said. Then, his smile turned a little sheepish, and a hint of pink rose to his cheeks. “Though, I must say, even though I may not have been clear, I was pleased to see you earlier. I’m not quite sure how, but my students seem to have discovered that we are indeed, ah, romantically involved before your timely appearance.

“I just wish that I could have introduced you to them on… better terms. Rest assured, I will be speaking to the disciplinary committee about that insect’s behaviour.”

Oh, yeah. That was something that existed, usually. Aventurine had long since stopped filing complaints to HIHR at the IPC. Being a Stoneheart did come with its perks, and one of them was that people were suddenly too gutless to say what they really thought of him to his face. But it made his life easier, so he took it for what it was.

“You don’t have to force the issue if it’s too annoying. Besides, the rest of them look like good kids! I love that you’re here doing what you do best - enlightening the masses and sharpening their dull minds… or something. It’s hot.”

“You truly are nonsensical, dear gambler. Still… I’m glad to know you approve of them. I trust your judge of character more than anyone, you know.”

Okay, now it was officially time to change the subject. Ratio had reached his ‘moments of genuine affection’ limit for the day, and any more was going to freak Aventurine out. Ratio leaned in as if he was going for a kiss, and Aventurine hurriedly shoved his face away. Couldn’t he save that sappy shit for when they got home?

“Whoah, okay, that’s enough sweetness for today. You’re gonna give me cavities. C’mon, let’s just go home already. I mean… unless you have another class?”

If he did, Aventurine was going to have words for whoever set up this whackjob timetabling.

Ratio unstuck his face from Aventurine’s palm to peer down at him. He looked a little put out, probably from being denied his kiss, but Aventurine hardened his heart. If he kept giving in, then Ratio would never learn his lesson.

“I don’t, but—“

“Great! So it’s time to clock off now, right?” As Aventurine’s eyes slid over to the door, they caught on a glowing red light at the lectern. Huh. Universally, that usually meant that it was recording something… “Oh… hold on a sec. Is this thing still supposed to be on?”

“What thing— Damn it.”

Things went a lot easier after that.

He had to admit it– the gossip mill of Veritas Prime truly rivalled the one that was at the IPC headquarters at Pier Point. The next time that he ended up on the campus of Veritas Prime, not even a week after he pulled his stint with Ratio’s philosophy class, it felt like all of his boyfriend’s students already knew who he was, and some of the ones that weren’t even his students did too.

Oh, well. It was all the same to him, anyway.

Visiting Ratio slowly became a once, then twice, then three to four days out of the week event. Memorising Ratio’s schedule soon became second nature, as well as messing around with the little ducklings that were his students. Word must have gotten out about how ballistic Ratio went over someone being racist to him as well, or either the rest of the students were actually normal, because none of them treated him any differently, which he was thankful for.

Actually, there was that one girl who had taken one look at his eyes and then started asking a great deal of questions about if he was connected to Ena the Order at all, but that was less offensive than it was confusing, and she had been very apologetic about it after, if not very enthusiastic in the moment.

Scholars. Being a little weird just had to be part of the job description.

Finding out about the club that played celestial jade twice a week was also a pleasant surprise. Turns out that university campuses weren’t as boring as he thought they were. Sure, maybe Ratio had gotten a little bit too panicked about him accidentally ignoring his phone, but that was something that the both of them were going to work through later. Presumably. Hopefully.

Mostly, he just had to admit that Doctor Erebus was right about him leaving the house more, especially when the weather was actually nice. That shit kind of ruled. Sigonia would always have a special place in his heart, but even he had to admit that it was great to not be sizzling under the sun in the day and freezing his balls off at night every day of his life. She probably also would have something to say about him being overly dependent on Ratio though, but he was working on one thing at a time. He was a grown ass adult. He did not get separation anxiety, thank you very much. Besides, was it really that much of a crime to miss one’s lover? He didn’t think so. Checkmate, Doctor Erebus.

Eventually, he got used to the domesticity of it all. He’d wake up next to Ratio, either from the sun slanting through the blinds, or from almost overheating with the weight of three cat cakes and a muscle koala for a boyfriend clinging onto him. They’d run through their morning routine together, then Ratio would head off to the university, with Aventurine joining him if he was in the mood–which was occasionally the case. Sometimes he’d sit in on Ratio’s classes even though he only understood about five percent of what was actually being said, sometimes he’d take a nap in Ratio’s office, or sometimes he’d wander around and see what trouble (within reason) he could get up to. Then, at the end of the day, they’d head home together and eat dinner. Sometimes, it ended in sex, and sometimes, it didn’t, but either way, Aventurine found himself content with the whole thing.

Keeping up with this arrangement would have suited him just fine, if it weren’t for the call that he got from Topaz one morning.

At a blisteringly early hour of the morning, his phone started ringing from where it was charging on the bedside table. Bleary eyed, he reached for it to squint at the caller ID. Topaz’s name stared back at him, as well as the somewhat unflattering photo he’d candidly taken of her once that was her contact photo in his phone. Ugh. If it was Topaz, then he’d actually have to answer.

Stifling a yawn, he sat up slightly to answer, lifting his phone to his ear.

“Aven—Aventurine here… Whas… what’s the matter?”

“Did you just wake up?” Topaz shot back instantly. She sounded annoyed, and Aventurine couldn’t blame her. It was already early for Veritas Prime, so he couldn’t even imagine what hour it was at Pier Point. Somewhere in the background, there was a muffled squeal that he thought might have come from Numby. “You sound awful. What’s wrong with you? Never mind, I don’t actually wanna know.”

Which was probably for the better. He didn’t think she would appreciate him telling her that he had had his back blown out last night and had ruined his voice in the process. Her thinking that it was because he just woke up was the kinder option. Over the phone, Topaz sighed.

“Yeah, look, I’m just gonna give it to you straight,” she began. “Marketing Development’s getting ready to pull some shit again, and Diamond’s called for all hands on deck to run as much damage control as he can. And that includes getting you back into the office, pronto.”

Seriously? As if he didn’t already have enough to hate Marketing Development for.

“Ugh… can’t this wait?”

“No,” she replied bluntly. “You have 48 system hours to get to Pier Point, or next time, it’ll be Jade calling, and she won’t be so nice about it.”

And then Topaz hung up, leaving Aventurine to blink at his phone a few times before he dropped it on top of the covers with a sigh. It bounced off a Ratio shaped lump, which let out a muffled grunt, before it landed face down next to one of the dozing snacks.

Well. Wasn’t that great. Just as he was getting used to his domestic life here, it was back to the corporate wage machine with him. He really questioned his luck sometimes.

With a sigh, he thwapped gently at the Ratio shaped lump with a closed fist. It didn’t grunt again, but it did shift slightly.

“Babe, wake up. Topaz just called. I have to go into the office this week. Guess my leave time is up.”

“No.”

Did he mishear that?

“What do you mean, no? Wh— hey!”

In a flurry of movement, Ratio pulled him back down under the covers, throwing a leg over Aventurine’s hip and hugging him to his chest. He tucked Aventurine’s head under his chin, effectively barring all means of escape.

He was a koala for real. A stupidly buff one too. Worst of all, nobody would believe him if he told them that the prickly, uptight Doctor Ratio turned into a heat seeking cuddle missile in the mornings.

“Call her back,” Ratio grumbled. “Tell her you can’t come in. I’ll write you a note.”

Aventurine sighed. Nobody would also believe him if he said that ever since they had started living together, the good doctor’s morning routine had gone to shit. Aventurine could barely drag him out of bed on a good day. It truly was a mystery how he kept up his physique, because Ratio was getting ridiculously spoiled.

He tried wriggling out of Ratio’s hold, but the arms around him simply tightened even more.

“Oh, you big lump…” Aventurine sighed. “You need to get up too. You have class today.”

Granted, it started a little later than some of his other classes in the week, but the longer they spent in bed, the more likely Ratio was going to be late.

Aventurine reached out for his phone as best he could, and his fingers caught the edge of it. He dragged it in, checking the time.

Hm. Well. Maybe Ratio had a point. It was still very early, and they had had a pretty late night yesterday as well. It was probably fine if they… stayed in bed for a while longer.

Travelling to Pier Point from Veritas Prime didn’t take that long, actually, and they did have 48 system hours of time allowance. If he left tomorrow, he could still make it in the time limit he’d been dealt. Yeah, he really should just take the chance now to spend time with his boyfriend before he had to leave.

“Never mind… you win this time. But only for now… we have to get up later.” Aventurine sighed.

With a slight grunt of effort, he twisted in Ratio’s hold so that they were pressed chest to chest, and he tangled their legs together. He tucked his face into the hollow of Ratio’s throat, breathing in deep.

A long time ago, he and his sister had slept like this too, pressed together for warmth in the cold desert night. When he grew older, he had resigned himself to a life of sleeping alone, because the alternative to that was something that he didn’t even want to bear thinking about.

But in the end, he had to accept that he missed it. He missed the weight of someone’s arm over his waist, the sound of someone’s heart under his ear—he didn’t know how much he missed it until he got it back.

Ratio wasn’t his sister, but that wasn’t a bad thing either. In his arms, Aventurine would only ever feel safe and loved—and that was what did not change between the two of them. So… as much as he whined and complained, he would always still find his way back there in the end every time.

Ratio did not smell like Aventurine’s soap anymore, but the smell of him was a familiar scent all the same, and there, in the warmth of his lover’s arms and the light of the almost breaking dawn, Aventurine closed his eyes.

Tomorrow, he’d go back to work, but today… today, for a little longer, he could be Kakavasha again.

In the time between Topaz calling him and his scheduled ship out to Pier Point, Aventurine spent the day hanging around on campus, waiting for Ratio to take breaks in between his classes. He didn’t know when it had happened, but he had become some kind of social butterfly with the students. They loved to tell him all the latest gossip, and being the nosy little bastard he was, he loved hearing about it. In exchange, he fed them little tidbits about Ratio, and laughed to himself as their eyes went rounder than dinner plates with every little outrageous thing he said. Oh man. If his boyfriend knew what he was spilling to these little ducklings, it’d be over for him. Good thing he didn’t have a clue of anything that happened under his nose. Ratio had his own fun on campus, so it was only right Aventurine was allowed to have his too.

After dinner, Ratio helped him pack for his trip, digging out the travel bags they had used for their first move back to Veritas Prime. It was a familiar sight for Aventurine, who sat on the bed petting the snacks as Ratio bustled around the house putting things away in the bags for him. He wasn’t sure that Ratio was even aware he was doing it—but it felt nice to be doted on. The fact that someone was doing this for him because they cared about him, and not because they wanted a favour or anything more sinister was one one that sometimes he still struggled with accepting. It was for Ratio’s sake as much as his own, really. Doing this helped him feel more secure about Aventurine’s safety… or something. It was his best guess, anyway.

It wasn’t until Ratio was standing in front of their wardrobe, holding two identical pairs of pants and glancing between them in thought that Aventurine sat up. Two of the snacks slid from his lap like jelly, and he gave them some apologetic pats before he snuck his way over to Ratio, hugging him from behind. He had to step up on tiptoe to hook his chin over Ratio’s shoulder, but it was worth it for the way Ratio instantly broke away from his pants inspection to press a kiss to Aventurine’s cheek.

“Stop thinking so much. They’re just pants, babe. Pick one and get it over with,” Aventurine said, and Ratio sagged slightly, giving the pair in his left hand one last lingering look before folding it up and placing it back in the drawer. The other he folded as well, but instead of putting it away, he held gingerly, twisting slightly to look at Aventurine.

“Are you sure you’ll have enough to wear, darling?” Ratio asked him, his brows furrowing, and Aventurine rolled his eyes.

“Come on, now you’re just being silly,” he replied. He unstuck himself from Ratio’s back to come up in front of him instead, plucking the folded pair of pants to put aside in the travel bag. His regular coat with the fur trim was already inside, as was an assortment of shirts and other clothes. “It’s not like I’m going away for a long while. I’ll just get it laundered if I need to wear it again. Or, y’know. I’ll buy some new clothes.”

If he was at Pier Point, it might be good to hit up the shopping street again if he had the chance. At least one good thing about having an incredibly high paying job was the way he could buy anything he wanted. And yeah, nice clothes might be some of those things. Could anyone blame him? He felt like he deserved to be a little materialistic after everything he’d been through.

That pair of pants was pretty much the last thing that needed to be packed. At least, it was the last thing to be packed according to Aventurine’s standards. If Ratio had his way, though, he might as well have shipped the whole of his wardrobe back to Pier Point, which kind of defeated the purpose of moving to Veritas Prime anyway.

Aventurine zipped the bag up and dropped it off next to the small suitcase that held the rest of his things. After a moment of thought, he gently ushered out the last of the cat cakes and closed the bedroom door as well. Better safe than sorry.

“But are you sure it’ll be enough?” Ratio asked again, and Aventurine fixed him with a slightly exasperated look. It really was. His past self would probably have already bet his life for the contents of his luggage if he saw how many clothes were packed in there.

“Yes, babe.”

Ugh, fuck it. Time to switch tactics.

Ratio was standing by the bed when Aventurine stalked over to him. It just made things easier when Aventurine set one hand on his chest, and pushed. Ratio fell back against the bed, and Aventurine didn’t miss the way his eyes darkened when he swung himself up to straddle Ratio’s hips.

“Enough of this, enough of that,” he huffed. “I’m going away on a trip tomorrow, and the only thing you can think about is whether or not I have enough clothes to wear? You need to rethink your priorities.”

It was all the invitation Ratio needed to flip the both of them over in one smooth motion. In an instant, Aventurine found himself flat on his back as Ratio’s arms caged either side of his head. In all the action, his shirt had slipped halfway off his shoulder, baring an expanse of skin that was already littered with bruises and bite marks from the night before.

“And what priorities might that be, my dear gambler?” Ratio rumbled, and Aventurine smirked.

“I don’t have to spell it out for you, right? Surely the good doctor and his genius intellect can figure it out for himself~”

The rest of his laughter was swallowed up by Ratio’s searing kiss.

Aventurine was going to damn sure make the most of the rest of those 48 system hours Topaz gave him. If Ratio wasn’t going to be there with him, then he’d simply have to make sure that he had another way of keeping his presence with him. And if that way was having his boyfriend paint his insides white with his come, and his outsides pink and red with hickeys, then that was just how it had to be. If he was being dragged back to work without being given proper notice, then he was going to make it everyone else’s problem.

In the end, the first part didn’t turn out to be much more than wishful thinking. Ratio did end up coming inside him, but he ended up cleaning it all out in the bath afterwards, which was pretty disappointing. Still, the amount of marks he left all over Aventurine’s body made up for it, and Aventurine wasn’t too sad about that at all. A bit of possessiveness from the man he loved was quite different from marks of possession from someone he didn’t, which was a discovery that he was all too pleased to make.

The day after, Ratio saw him off at the spaceport.

The furthest that Ratio could go without setting out for Pier Point himself was at departures, just before the check in gates. Unlike the day before, they really couldn’t afford to have a lazy morning. Ratio’s classes started in the afternoon that day, but seeing Aventurine off at the spaceport was a whole morning affair.

Even though it was technically a work trip, Aventurine didn’t dress in his usual flashy work clothes. Instead, he had opted for something more comfortable for the trip over. He had stolen one of Ratio’s sweaters for it, and even though it was at least a size or two too big on him, it was soft and warm. Ratio hadn’t said anything about him wearing it either, which just about meant he’d accepted it was Aventurine’s now. He’d live, probably. He had a lot of sweaters for someone who usually walked around with one arm and half his cleavage hanging out for the whole universe to see.

Things were already in full swing by the time they arrived at the spaceport. Veritas Prime wasn’t exactly a major tourist destination, but the same couldn’t be said for Pier Point, and being as close as they were, it was a popular layover stop. Around them, plenty of other travellers made their farewells and final checks, and in the busy stream of people, nobody batted an eye as Ratio reached for Aventurine’s hand to press several kisses to his knuckles.

“Take care of yourself, won’t you? Send me a message when you get off the ship, and send me one when you get to the office. And before you go to bed.” Ratio said, and Aventurine laughed, patting his shoulder with his free hand.

“Fine, fine, I will, okay? Don’t be so worried! It’s just work.”

“I worry about you because I love you,” Ratio replied matter-of-factly, and something about the ease of how he said it had Aventurine’s heart swooping in his chest. “And your work doesn’t value you enough.”

At this, Ratio turned his gaze on Aventurine, frowning slightly. He was doing the thing again–the thing Aventurine hated. The kicked puppy thing, and worst of all, he didn’t think Ratio was even aware he was doing it, or the power it held over Aventurine. He opened his mouth for a moment, but thought better of it, instead leaning up to press a chaste kiss to Ratio’s lips.

“I’ll be fine,” Aventurine said firmly. “It’s just Pier Point. The worst thing I’ll have to face there is probably the coffee machine in the break room. I doubt they’ve fixed it in all the time I’ve been gone.”

At that, Ratio finally cracked a tiny smile, and relief flooded through Aventurine. Whew. Crisis averted. He’d rather let the stars fall out of the sky than to have Veritas Ratio be truly upset.

“Then… perhaps I should go with you?” Ratio started, raising a hand to his chin in thought, and Aventurine blinked. “A broken coffee machine… yes. I do believe that’s well within my ability to repair.”

Okay, now that was getting to be a bit much. And Aventurine thought he was the clingy one. How Ratio ever managed before they officially got together was truly one of the mysteries of the universe.

“You’re just being unreasonable now,” Aventurine said mildly. With slight reluctance, he dropped Ratio’s hand, reaching for the bag that lay on the floor between them, hefting it up. Ooft. What the hell was in there? Why was it so heavy? Did Ratio pack him an entire suit of armour or something?

“I’ll be fine, really,” he said again, and Ratio sighed, lowering his gaze.

“I know. I just worry…”

Goddess, this man.

“Come on, have a little faith in me,” Aventurine said, throwing a touch of assurance into his voice. He normally only busted this out when he needed to secure a business deal or had to convince someone that he had a royal flush when he only had a full house, but it also worked on Ratio, sometimes. He hoped that this was one of those times. “I’ll come back to you, safe and sound so… just trust me, okay?”

After a moment, Ratio sighed.

“Alright. Good luck, darling. I love you.”

Ratio drew Aventurine into a gentle kiss, and smoothed a hand over his hair. When he pulled away, he looked resigned—to a week without his boyfriend, Aventurine supposed. He was getting too sentimental for his own good.

But he couldn’t help himself.

Aventurine dropped his bag and threw himself forward, dragging Ratio into a tight hug. In an instant, Ratio’s arms circled him, returning the embrace. He buried his face into the crook of Ratio’s neck, pressing a smile into the space there.

“I love you too, Veritas.”

Aventurine’s apartment at Pier Point was as empty as he had left it.

He didn’t stay in it much, now that he had moved in with Ratio over at Veritas Prime. That being said, he had hardly stayed in it back when he was living at Pier Point either, seeing as he spent more time travelling to other planets rather than staying at headquarters.

It was generously provided to him by the IPC, who owned the entire housing block. Actually, he could say with confidence that the whole neighbourhood was 90% IPC employees, but only the top brass like himself had swanky places like these, for all the good it did him.

He dropped his luggage off in his room first. The bed was still there, made up but if not a little dusty. Whatever. He could let the whole place air out a little while he went to go see what was happening at head office. Changing the sheets now when he was only going to be staying for a little while, and when he didn’t know if there were any spares in his closets seemed like a waste of time. He could deal with dusty sheets for a few days. It wouldn’t be the worst living conditions he’d been in, after all.

He slid open the door to the balcony and stepped out, letting the midday breeze pass over him. From here, he could see all of Pier Point, even though the IPC’s head office building towered over all the rest. Smiling wryly to himself, he got out his phone and snapped a picture of the view before sending it off to Ratio. They’d only been apart for less than half a day, but he missed that sour berry of his already. Hopefully, this matter wouldn’t take long to resolve, and he could head home the minute it was all finished up.

He went back inside, but left the balcony door open. Ratio would scold him about it if he knew, no doubt, but there wasn’t really anything valuable left in Aventurine’s place anyway, and if he actually did get burgled, he’d be more impressed at the person who managed to climb up more than a hundred floors of glass to get to his place anyway. The place was dusty as hell. At least this way he could start getting some kind of fresh air into it.

Checking the pantry didn’t yield any mouldy Basic Ingredients, but he did turn up a couple packets of rice and freeze-dried seasoning that he could throw into the Synthesiser for Cosmic Fried Rice. That was at least one meal sorted then, and he could go shopping for the week later—if he wasn’t held up at the office that is.

Ugh, the office.

Logically, he knew that he would have had to get back to work at some point, but that didn’t mean he expected it to be so soon. He’d anticipated a few more months of leave before being called back to do some basic desk work before finally being assigned back out to missions in the field—at which point, he’d put in requests for Ratio to join him as a consultant or partner or whatever, and they’d continue as they usually did. Screw whatever HIHR said, they worked better as a team, and everyone knew it.

From what it sounded like, this didn’t even sound like an off planet assignment. Things that needed all Ten Stonehearts were pretty uncommon, though it wasn’t to say that it didn’t happen. Just because all of them were needed didn’t mean they all had to be in the same room at once though. There really wasn’t much reason for him to have been called to Pier Point in person unless there was a notice he missed. And there wasn’t. He’d checked.

But… seeing as he’d much rather live to come back to his boyfriend instead of getting an IPC hit squad sent out to their house, he had shut up and hauled ass back to Pier Point.

Aventurine changed into his work clothes with little fanfare. His normal outfit did a good enough job with covering up his shoulders, but there was no salvaging the situation on his neck. Oh well. His reputation was already in the gutter even before he started dating Ratio, so in theory, it would change absolutely nothing.

The last thing he did before leaving for office was to carefully fold up Ratio’s sweater and leave it on his bed. Maybe what he thought about having nothing valuable in his apartment was a lie. There was something far more precious than any gemstone right there on the bed.

Okay. It was time to find out what he was needed for.

When Aventurine walked into head office, twenty minutes later, people goggled at him as he passed them by. It made sense, maybe. They hadn’t seen him in months, and he still wasn’t entirely sure what statement the company had put out after he died and came back on Penacony. For all he knew, people probably thought he actually died for real, permanently, in a no going back way. Well, too bad for them—he was still here.

Topaz had sent him a brief and perfunctory text earlier telling him to report to Jade’s office for a run down of what this ‘damage control’ was when he got to Pier Point, so that was what he did. The elevator ride up to the floor where her office was was one of the most awkward he’d had in his life, and that was including the time the doors had opened to a group of employees gossiping about him very loudly to each other. And it wasn’t very complimentary gossip either. Actually, it was more like slurs than gossip, but both were pretty much the same thing when it came to him, usually.

Damage control, as it turned out, was apparently having Aventurine show up during the right meetings only so that Strategic Investments could pretend that they had a unified front as Diamond and Oswaldo Schneider “duked it out” in the executive boardrooms. He was pretty sure that was just a code word for the marathon rounds of extremely nasty hate sex they were having in there though. What Diamond got up to in his work hours was his own business, but if it ended up with Oswaldo Schneider on his knees, crying pathetically, then Aventurine really couldn’t care less what Diamond did or didn’t do. He wouldn’t say he was much of a voyeur, but being able to see that with his own eyes (and send a picture or two of it to a certain cowboy) would definitely put a spring in his step.

In the meantime though, Aventurine went to go check in on his office, and having not stepped foot in it for several months, sneezed as a cloud of dust assaulted his nose. Holy hell to high heavens, this place was a mess. It was even worse than his apartment, he thought. It made sense though. He hadn’t been in here since before Penacony, and office cleaning of senior managers were carefully scheduled and supervised in advance so that company secrets wouldn’t get leaked by opportunistic janitors. He really needed to air this place out.

By Gaiathra. He really had been domesticated. All that free time he had spent doing housework back at home had really left its mark on him. First it was his apartment, and now it was his office.

Still, if he was expected to be hanging around without being given any actual assigned work, then he might as well make the most of it.

He cracked open the window first, then turned to his desk. A fine layer of dust coated its surface, and when he swiped a finger through, it came up grey. First things first then.

For the next few hours, Aventurine took the time to clean as much of his office as he could, starting with his desk. From the hall, he dug up a forgotten bucket, mop, and towels from a janky supply closet. He put the mop aside for the moment, but the bucket he filled, adding in some suspicious liquid from the closet that he thought probably was cleaning fluid.

Papers that weren’t relevant any more were dumped into his wastebin, while others that he thought were probably important found themselves put away in a file folder in the filing cabinet he had in the corner. The commemorative shot glass collection that he’d gathered from casinos across the universe and used as paperweights were carefully rinsed, wiped and dried before being replaced on his desk, lined up all in a neat row.

When his desk was cleared of trash and all neatened up, Aventurine dropped down into his chair for a break. Whatever that suspicious liquid was worked wonders. There had been a stubborn ass coffee stain on his desk for ages, but when he’d gone at it with a towel soaked in the cleaning solution, it had wiped off without any resistance at all. It would definitely be useful at home. He really had to find out what it was.

He pulled out his phone, opening it up to his chat with Ratio. The last message he had sent was a short one just to let him know that he’d arrived to the office, just as Ratio had asked. There wasn’t any other reply, but Ratio had sent him a cute thumbs up sticker to let him know he’d seen it. It had been a little while since then, and accounting for the time difference between Pier Point and Veritas Prime… Ratio was probably in a lecture right about now. Still, Aventurine typed out a short series of messages, smiling to himself.

He didn’t get any reply then, but sending it was enough for him. Stashing his phone away, he got to his feet.

Almost immediately, a wave of exhaustion crashed into him. Damn. There was no way that cleaning his office took that much out of him, did it?

Still… if he wasn’t needed for anything, then he might as well take some time to slack off and take a real break.

Holding back a yawn, Aventurine shuffled out of his office, locking the door behind him on his way out.

The upper break room on the Strategic Investment floors at IPC headquarters was rarely used. It was almost entirely due to the fact that the upper floors were reserved for higher ranked employees like the Stonehearts and those that directly worked under them, but there was also the fact that the coffee machine there seemed to always be broken. It had been broken when Aventurine first got to his position, and even now, months after he had last been there, it was still broken. Not even his luck had managed to get it to budge.

In any case, he wasn’t there for coffee. He was there for a nap. The space-lag was starting to get to him, even though the time difference between here and Veritas Prime wasn’t even that much. There was just something about interstellar travel that just sucked all the energy out of him.

Aventurine flopped onto the couch with a sigh, tugging some of the cushions closer to use as a pillow. Another benefit of this break room almost never being used was that it always stayed pretty clean, so he felt comfortable enough taking a nap there.

He turned on the television too, and the screen flickered to life with a static hum. There probably wasn’t anything good on at the moment, but all he needed was some white noise on in the background to help him drift off.

Eventually, he did. The last thing he had remembered was watching a rerun episode from an earlier season of I Love You Like The Rhapsody Of The Stars, and he only hazily began to wake up when something butted insistently into his side.

Eyes still blurry with sleep, he nudged it away with the back of his hand.

“Yeah, yeah, I get it…” He grumbled, flipping his hand over give the thing butting into his side a couple of pets. “I’ll feed you, just…

Strange. The cat cakes usually weren’t so smooth, nor did they usually make oinking sounds… Wait.

Aventurine wasn’t at home.

He was at work.

So that wasn’t a cake cat he was petting, and…

His eyes flew open, and he jolted upright.

Under his hand, a very indignant looking Numby batted at his fingers with their forelegs, and he hastily yanked his hand back. If the little Warp Trotter was here, then that could only mean–

“I am so sorry—Oh. It’s you.”

Aventurine swung his gaze over to the door where Topaz stood, staring back at him with an indecipherable expression on her face.

“It’s… me?” He repeated awkwardly, trying to paste some kind of smile onto his face.

An tense silence hung in the air between them.

Aventurine was fully aware of the fact that he wasn’t Topaz’s favourite coworker. Hell, he couldn’t even say if he had one either (except Ratio. Always except Ratio. But it wasn’t exactly the same–), but at least Topaz just disliked him on principle of his methods, and not because he was from Sigonia. She was a bright girl, and far better at her job than Aventurine ever could be, which already meant he respected her in his mind, even if it didn’t go both ways. She had actually sent him a perfectly serviceable, if not somewhat impersonal gift basket and get well soon card after he had been dismissed from the Penacony assignment, but there wasn’t too much more to their working or personal relationship.

Come to think of it, other than the phone call he’d received from her two days ago, this was pretty much their first meeting since… Penacony. And, well, some farewell that had been.

Topaz was the one that broke the silence, and their awkward eye contact first.

“I’ll get going then–Numby, come on.” She dropped her gaze down to the Trotter at Aventurine’s side, who gave one last huffing squeal at Aventurine before hopping off the couch.

“Wait, wait! Where are you going? There’s still plenty of room here–” Aventurine gestured to the otherwise empty break room. “I mean, you came here for a reason right? Unless, uh, you really find me that unpleasant to be around..”

Topaz’s face scrunched up, and she sighed. She looked between the door, Aventurine, and Numby before she finally muttered something under her breath and strode over to the couch, dropping herself onto the end opposite Aventurine. Numby instantly beelined for her, jumping up into her lap.

Okay, well… Aventurine had gotten her to stay, but that was as far as he’d thought out. Why did he get her to stay, again? There was something he wanted to know… kind of.

“So…” He started off, shoving his hands into his pockets. “How’ve you been?”

When he finally looked back at Topaz, she looked like she had bitten into a lemon. Wow. Tough crowd. The least she could do was make it a little less obvious she regretted her choice to stay just now.

“Can we not do this right now,” she said, and Aventurine internally winced. Maybe he was losing his touch. Time was, he could charm anyone with a smile and a couple thousand credits to go with it.

He raised his hands up in a placating gesture. “Okay, okay, no small talk, got it. Then, uh… how about work talk? Do you have anything to do as well, or are they just keeping you around like they are for me?”

Aventurine didn’t know it was possible, but Topaz’s face turned even sourer. Forget the lemon, it looked like she had taken a shot of pure vinegar.

“Alright, let’s scrap that part too, then,” he said hastily. The look on her face was all the answer he needed, really. “Um…”

He searched uselessly in his brain for something to talk about. He had pulled her in here to stay, so the least he could do was make things… less awkward, even if he was kind of failing at that at the moment. Small talk was out, shop talk was out… his gaze drifted down to Numby. Ah… come to think of it, Topaz did like her little critters, didn’t she? And he just so happened to have adopted a bunch of little critters not too long ago.

It was worth a shot.

“Do…” He started off hesitantly. Was this crossing the line into making too much of a personal relationship with a coworker? Then again… one of the last messages he had sent to that grey haired Trailblazer on the Astral Express, they had very bluntly replied— ‘Dude. You need more friends.’ It stung, but it was the truth. And in a normal job, it wasn’t that uncommon for coworkers to become friends after a while. “Do.. you wanna see photos of my pets?”

Topaz’s head swung around so fast that Aventurine swore he almost heard a snapping noise.

“You? You have pets?” She asked, dumbfounded.

“What’s that supposed to mean…”

“I don’t know, I just never pegged you for that kind of guy, especially since—Never mind. Show me.”

“Okay…”

A little demanding, but Aventurine wasn’t going to call her out on that now. Baby steps.

He took out his phone and opened it to his photo gallery, navigating to a folder that he kept all his cat cake photos in. He scrolled for a little bit until he found a good one—the three of them napping in the sun. A little bit of Ratio’s leg could be seen in the background, but it was so plain and blurry that it wasn’t obvious whose it was at all. Then again… it wasn’t exactly like Aventurine was hiding his relationship either. Aw, whatever. He handed the phone to Topaz, who gasped loudly.

“They’re so cute!!” She gushed, zooming in on the photo. “No way! Where did you get them? What are their names? I’ve never seen anything like them before!”

“Heh, they are, aren’t they? They’re from the—“ At this, he blanked for a moment, trying to remember what Ratio had said about where he’d adopted the kids from. “—Herta Space Station. This one here’s Rummy, that one’s Eights and over here—Fish. I don’t really know what they are still, but y’know, it’s fine. I think. There’s more if you just—“

Topaz lifted her eyes to look at him, arching a brow in surprise.

“Madam Herta’s Space Station? I’m surprised she pulled herself away from that big project of hers long enough to have anything to do with… whatever these little guys are.”

“Oh no, I don’t think she had anything to do with it, they were just living there at the time. I think it was actually someone else who made them… Mei? Something Mei? I can’t remember.”

Aventurine shrugged. At the time, Ratio had ranted at length about safety procedures and ill advised experiments, but he’d gone so quick that for once, Aventurine didn’t catch or understand much of it at all. He’d just resolved to let the man tire himself out and drag him into another rant about something he was actually passionate about later, and that was exactly what he did. That Aventurine had jumped his bones no less than ten minutes into that rant was a bit more memorable, but he didn’t think he could be blamed. Ratio was incredibly hot when he was lecturing on something he was invested in, and Aventurine was incredibly hot for Ratio.

“Huh…” Topaz swiped through a few more photos before shooting a quick glance up at him. “Wait, were you at Herta Space Station? How’d you get your hands on them?”

“Me? No. Ratio got them for me…” Aventurine said, just as Topaz swiped through the photos and landed on a picture of Ratio in his pyjamas, asleep on the couch with the cat cakes all napping on him as well. The rest of his explanation died in his throat. Oh, shit. Yeah, he couldn’t explain that one away easily. He just so happened to have a candid picture of Ratio in sleepwear, with three critters he’d just so proudly said were his? He was working up to the relationship reveal, damn it, and this threw his entire carefully planned sequence into chaos.

“I see,” she said evenly. She didn’t look at him. Aventurine didn’t know if that would have made the situation better or worse in that moment.

“Ratio is… um, Doctor Ratio, I mean.” He added lamely.

“Your Doctor Ratio? Yeah, I’m familiar.” Topaz said, and Aventurine screamed at himself inside his mind to say something—anything—to salvage the situation.

“Oh. Okay. That’s… that’s great. Wait, wait.” Hold on, what did she say? “What do you mean, my Doctor Ratio?”

At this, Topaz finally looked at him. She locked his phone and handed it back to him, the corner of her mouth twisting in a half-smile, half-grimace before it finally flattened out into something neutral.

“…You said he got them for you?”

Aventurine nodded.

“Right. Yeah. He did.”

Topaz only stared at him. After a while, a small suspicion started creeping up on him until he finally chuckled nervously. His internal screaming began to shift in tone until it sounded suspiciously like a certain doctor telling him he was an idiot. Fondly, albeit, but that did nothing to change the fact that Aventurine felt as though he had somehow lost the plot somewhere.

“…Okay, I see what you mean.” Aventurine said. Topaz just continued to stare at him, and when Numby turned their eyeless stare on him as well, he swore he actually felt a bead of sweat roll down his neck.

“We’re dating now, by the way.” He blurted out. Fuck. Fuck! Why had he said that? What was wrong with him? This was not at all how he wanted this to go, or how he saw it going in the first place. “Me and Ratio, I mean. He’s my boyfriend.”

Oh dear Amber Lord, just strike him down where he stood. If there was ever a time to disprove the notion that all Avgin were notorious silver tongues, it was now. In the case that it was actually true, then Aventurine was certainly bringing shame to his ancestors now–not that he was doing a stellar job of it in the first place, seeing as he was the only one left—all because he couldn’t stop saying shit.

Aventurine wished he could say the room went dead silent at that, but unfortunately, it did not. He still hadn’t muted the TV from when he had turned it on earlier, and the female lead had just gotten to a dramatic scene where she had just burst into tears and was sobbing loudly— which he felt like was a pretty accurate description of his life at the moment. Finally, Topaz replied.

“…Congrats?”

“Thanks…?” Okay, back up a moment here. Usually, when something like this happened, people usually got… excited, didn’t they? Or at least, they didn’t sound so confused about it. That had been what he’d seen from all his daytime soaps at least. “I thought you might be more, uh, surprised…”

At that, Topaz winced, which was probably the most emotion Aventurine had seen from her since he’d shown her his pet photos.

“Uh, well, to be honest, we all thought you were already dating but you just didn’t tell us all officially…” She said slowly, hugging Numby closer to her chest.

“And who’s we?”

“Oh, you know.” Topaz said vaguely. Aventurine definitely did not know, but he gave her room to elaborate anyway. She didn’t—at least, not in the way that he thought she might.

“Well, we weren’t actually sure if you guys were doing more than just hooking up and stuff, but it seemed pretty obvious there was something there.”

“Obvious.” Aventurine repeated, feeling a little lightheaded. The Ratio-sounding voice in his head got even louder. He ignored it.

“Every time I’ve seen him around you, it’s like he’s a completely different person,” Topaz continued, and as if to prove her point, Numby let out a quiet squeal, wiggling in her hold. “He gets all… goopy and puppyish for you.”

“Huh.” Aventurine said.

You are aware I have feelings for you, yes? The Ratio-voice in his head was saying now, and not only that, his mind was now filling with images of Ratio doting on him, smiling at him like he was some lovesick fool, gently patching up his wounds after a mission had gone sideways, shaking him awake in the middle of the night when he’d come to have a breakthrough in his current project and simply just had to tell someone about it–

And Aventurine realised, quite suddenly, that he really missed his boyfriend.

“But uh… exactly how long have you guys been together?”

“Since… Penacony.”

Oh, boy. Aventurine was so glad that he was sitting down then. If he’d been standing up, he might have honest to goddess swooned at the thought of Ratio being in love with him. He didn’t know how this kept happening. He would have thought he’d have gotten used to the idea by now, but every time it happened, it still left him feeling like he’d been concussed.

“Penacony, huh… So… I take it that’s what you’ve been doing all this time?”

“That’s right, we…” Aventurine broke off in the middle of his sentence when Topaz pulled out her phone and started texting someone. It was kind of bad form for a conversation, he felt, but he’d been guilty of doing the same plenty of times before, so he didn’t exactly think he had a right to complain about it. “Uh, sorry, do you need to take a call or–?”

“Oh, this?” Topaz blinked at him, and hurriedly shoved her phone back into her pocket. “No, no, sorry. I owe some of the Astral Express crew money now. There was… a betting pool going on.”

“And that bet was…”

At this, she coughed slightly, and looked away, a faint pinkness rising to her cheeks.

“...W-well, we were all interested to know what exactly was going on with the two of you. How was I supposed to know you only got together officially after Penacony?”

“You bet on how long it’d take for me to get together with my–with Ratio?”

She very pointedly did not meet Aventurine’s gaze at that, instead looking at Numby. Some sort of silent conversation seemed to happen between the two of them, and it ended with Topaz shaking her head slightly and scratching the Trotter behind an ear.

“You didn’t have to put it that way… But, uh… yeah…” She trailed off lamely.

Aventurine didn’t know whether to laugh or to actually be kind of impressed. Aha was probably laughing at the sheer irony of it all somewhere out there in the cosmos. The gambler’s love life was being bet on without himself being aware of it. It was the perfect setup. He suddenly was a little glad he’d only been a bit vague about his leave plans when he was texting the Trailblazer–otherwise the results of that bet would have come in a lot sooner.

When he blinked back into awareness, Topaz had drawn herself up onto the couch, resting her feet against the coffee table. She was finally looking at him again, albeit with half her face hidden behind Numby’s round body. Unlike before though, she didn’t look confused or otherwise blank-faced, but she did look thoughtful.

“Honestly?” She began, and Aventurine shot her a quizzical look. “I kind of didn’t recognise you earlier. You look way different.”

“Eh? I’m still wearing the same old same old.”

Same old same old was a little smaller on him than he remembered, but it still fit, so he wasn’t about to complain. It probably had shrunk in the wash or something.

(It didn’t. There was no way something as expensive as his work outfit could be machine washed or hand washed. It had to be dry cleaned at the bare minimum, and subject to a twenty five step specialty spot treatment every time he so much as wore it out to a ‘strategic investment’.)

“Not that,” she huffed. “You look, I dunno, happier? Healthier? Less like a strong wind could blow you over? It’s kinda weird. The whole time I’ve known you, you’ve always been kinda–y’know.”

She made a gesture with her hand, wiggling her fingers in a ‘so-so’ manner.

Oh.

Maybe… she had a point.

Ever since he’d started living with Ratio, he’d had stability. He was getting fed proper square meals three times a day, and only very rarely was that Synthesiser made. He had three cute furry children, and he slept better at night, even if he did sometimes wake up in a cold sweat. But Ratio was there each time too, holding him, brushing his sweaty bangs away from his forehead, and bringing him a cool glass of water.

Mostly, he wasn’t risking his life anymore. He didn’t have to rely on his luck except for if he wanted to do a favour for some of the cute little ducklings in Ratio’s classes with their gacha games. In that house, he wasn’t Aventurine of Stratagems, the IPC executive, or Kakavasha, the last blessed child of the Avgin. He was just someone who led a fairly normal life alongside someone that he loved. They were both his names and he wore them as he needed; sometimes with pride, sometimes with regret, but they were only ever halves of his whole–and Ratio, who knew him by both and knew him by more than either of them, was the only one who he felt like understood that.

“Well, I have been on leave for a while…”

But that was too much to explain to Topaz. Though… maybe he didn’t need to explain it to her.

Even as she lifted her eyes to the ceiling in exasperation, when she looked back at him, there was something warm and soft in it too. Aventurine had only heard about it secondhand, but he was sure of it. That kind of warmth was what earned her her success rate, and had been what caused her to blunder the Jarilo-VI project. She really was too sweet for her own good.

“Ugh–that’s not what I meant– forget it. I guess I’m trying to say… I’m happy for you. I’m glad to know that someone’s looking out for you…”

“...Thanks. I’m… pretty happy too,” Aventurine said, and for once, he felt like he meant it.

But.. yeah. That was definitely as much of a personal relationship with his coworker that he could manage at the moment. He was still on company time, and even if he was being paid to sit around, he wasn’t being paid to spill out his entire spiritual journey via death-by-Emanator and subsequent dick-so-good-he-saw-heaven. It was time to bring things back to work related matters, unfortunately.

“Any idea when you think Diamond’ll be done with Schneider?”

The conversation he’d had with Topaz this entire seemed to soften her up a bit though. This time, she didn’t immediately balk at the idea of talking about work, but she did frown and roll her eyes. Bless her for realising he wanted to move on from the topic though.

“Knowing them? Who knows. Especially since Penacony was pretty much a huge middle finger to Marketing Development. Could be a few days to a few weeks. Negotiations.” Topaz snorted, and Numby squealed in agreement. Negotiations indeed. It seemed like she thought the exact same about Diamond and Oswaldo’s favourite method of ‘negotiating’.

Aventurine dropped his head into his hands with a groan. This…actually had been what he’d been afraid of. A few days, he could handle, even if he wouldn’t be too happy about it. A few weeks, however… he might as well just have listened to Ratio at the beginning of it all and just refused to turn up in the first place.

“I wanna go home to my boyfriend…” he muttered half to himself, and Topaz gave him a deadpan stare out of the corner of his eye.

“Oh yeah? Chin up, loverboy. You better hope that whatever gives you luck rubs off on the rest of us, because I’m not too happy to be stuck waiting around here either.”

She said that, but Aventurine also knew for a fact that Topaz was single at the moment. She didn’t know what it was like to be in love. But if it got Diamond and Oswaldo to wrap up whatever crazy fling they were having, then he’d gladly pray to his goddess, or whatever Aeon that was listening, for a little bit of help.

In the end though, his goddess must have smiled on him once again, because Topaz was right.

A few days later, at an obscenely early hour in the morning, Aventurine received the team-wide email notifying him that negotiations between Oswaldo and Diamond had finally wrapped up, and they had reached a compromise. He took that to mean Diamond had finally bust a nut in Oswaldo and Oswaldo had finally caved, which meant that after the debrief, he could finally fuck off and go home.

It had been a long few days, and he still wasn’t entirely sure what he had been called back for. He spent most of it cleaning his office, sitting around in stuffy meetings, and watching even more daytime television in the break room. He did spend one day down in the technology department’s research labs looking for something interesting he could swipe and bring back to Ratio, but he had been kicked out after accidentally causing a minor explosion.

It was totally unfair, in his opinion. It wasn’t even as if anyone got hurt, since he’d thrown up shields to protect them all, and he’d promised to cover the costs of the damages himself, but apparently, even Stonehearts needed the proper licences and accreditations to get into the labs. If he didn’t want to be reported, he’d have to leave, which was no fun at all. No wonder Ratio hated dealing with the IPC. Their bureaucracy truly left something to be desired.

He’d give Ratio a call before bed every night as well too. There was something domestic about that too, as he lay in bed with his phone next to his ear. He didn’t have much to contribute about his own days, as uneventful and full of the corporate slave experience that it was, but things seemed relatively entertaining on Ratio’s end at least. A lot of their calls was him listening to Ratio rant about whichever student or coworker that had failed to meet his standards once again, and a report on the cat cakes in his absence. It was nice, but it also made him miss Ratio a lot. To put it in Ratio’s terms, the phone calls were treating the symptoms, and not the cause. The phone calls were simply a stopgap measure for the overall issue of being physically separated.

Aventurine took the debrief call in his newly cleaned office with his microphone muted and camera off. Unsurprisingly, Diamond was also muted for the whole thing while Jade, Pearl and Obsidian delivered the reports with their usual brisk efficiency. Aventurine couldn’t exactly say he was paying attention. He was much too busy scrolling through the photos on his phone, trying to pick out which would be good ones to get printed and put on his desk. That one of Ratio at the resort planet for sure, that one of him and Ratio on a date for their one month anniversary, that one of Ratio imitating one of his sillier statues when he thought nobody was looking…

“—Aventurine? Still with us?”

Jade’s voice rang out over the call, and Aventurine straightened up instantly from his slouch on his office chair. Technically, he didn’t even have to. His camera was off, for Qlipoth’s sake. But Jade knew. Somehow, she always did.

Shit. What had been the question again?

He fumbled for the call screen and unmuted himself.

“Uh, yeah! Yeah, you have my full support,” he said hastily. “Whatever you need, I’ll do it.”

Maybe he shouldn’t have said that. He knew better than to agree to anything Jade said straight up without checking the terms and agreements, verbally, written, or otherwise.

Thankfully though, she didn’t seem to call him out on it.

“Well, someone sounds like they’re eager to get back in the field,” Jade said with a hint of amusement. There was a slight ruffle of papers from her end of the call, and Aventurine’s stomach dropped. “What assignment should we give to our little peacock next then, hmm?”

Really? They wouldn’t send him out on a mission immediately after dragging him back, would they? There was paperwork for this sort of thing, doctor’s clearance, rules—that applied to him, even if they wouldn’t let him quit peacefully. After a beat of silence, Jade chuckled.

“Haha, that’s only a rhetorical question. This deal with Marketing Development will keep us busy for quite some time. There’s that saying… keep your friends close, and your enemies closer, yes? I don’t expect there to be much off-site work in the coming weeks. Just be ready to be on call. That will be all for today. Good work, everyone.”

Jade ended the call from her side, and the rest of his coworkers left one by one as well, until he was the only one remaining in the meeting room. With a sigh, Aventurine left as well, setting his phone back on his desk.

That was too close for comfort.

He didn’t have an issue with making it known he was taken, nor did he think he could ever really hide it in the first place. Diamond had his sticky fingers in all sorts of cosmic pies, and through him, there was nothing that Jade didn’t know either. Topaz knew already, for obvious reasons, but it was a gamble that his bosses wouldn’t do anything about it, and so far, they didn’t seem interested in calling his bluff. What he did take offence to was the idea of having to go out on another trip and having to stay separated from Ratio for even longer. He didn’t know how some of those kids at the university managed to ever do long distance. Here he was, a few days gone, and he was already wilting like a dying flower. Truly, the next generation were far bolder and stronger than any of their predecessors ever were.

Still, at least there was one bright side to his day.

Finally, his long ass work trip was fucking over. Now he could go home.

The ship landed back on Veritas Prime in the late afternoon, which was perfect for Aventurine. It was drizzling lightly as he left the spaceport, which wasn’t so perfect, but as long as it stayed like that and didn’t get worse, then Aventurine was content to leave it be.

As much as he would have liked to leg it straight to the university, his actual first order of business was to go home to drop off all his luggage.

He also missed the snacks too.

When he opened the door, they swarmed the entryway, hopping over Aventurine’s feet and mewling for attention.

“Whoah, calm down you three! I wasn’t even gone that long! Papa wasn’t that mean to you all, was he?”

He crouched down, and the three of them wasted no time in flinging themselves closer. One all but forced itself into his arms as the others scrambled up to perch on his shoulders. He hugged the one in his arms close as he wandered further into the house.

So far, so good. Nothing seemed to have changed dramatically in his absence. He could never be sure with the three snacks being as precocious as they were, but things were as neat as ever. Still, he knew that appearances were deceiving. There was a tupperware of sliced apples in the fridge, probably prepared in advance by Ratio for later, but Aventurine helped himself to it as he lapped the house.

One thing he hadn’t told Topaz before was that despite acting like actual cats for the most part, the three snacks were also disarmingly smart. Aventurine didn't know what kind of life they had been through before he’d adopted them, but maybe the fact that they lived on a research focused space station should have given him a clue. Even though he’d named them all, they took after Ratio in their nature.

Every time the both of them had left them alone for too long, some kind of experiment would pop up in the house. He was all for encouraging them to follow their passions, but sometimes, even he had to admit it was too much. Ratio thought it was downright charming though, and he was unfairly soft on them. If it was any of his actual human students making such unsafe experiments, he’d have chewed them out for it, but with the snacks, all he did was give them a gentle lecture on safety procedures—not that it ever seemed to stick.

It wasn’t until he got to the spare room that he found something off. When he opened the door, he wasn’t exactly sure what he was looking at. It seemed like a fully functional lab, if a lab was built out of pots, pans, and some of Ratio’s actual scientific equipment that he kept at home. He glanced down at the cat cake in his arms, who looked back at him innocently, before he quietly shut the door.

Yeah, he was going to leave that to the professionals to disassemble. His recent track record with labs was not great, and he’d rather have an explosion happen in the blast proof IPC labs than in his house. Ratio could deal with it when he got home.

There were more important things at hand anyway.

Aventurine had come up with a plan, and that plan was fairly simple.

There was always a common misconception that just because he left a lot of outcomes in his plan up to luck, he just didn’t have any. That was false information, plain and simple. Gambling was equally about strategy as it was luck, and he knew when to play his cards and when to fold to hit jackpot.

That being said, it didn’t mean all of his plans were overly complicated like the one he had cooked up at Penacony, or barring that, the one that had landed him in front of the IPC on trial all those years ago. If he could go for a simple solution that suited his own terms, then he would.

The steps for this one weren’t complicated at all.

Step one: Go to the University of Veritas Prime, and surprise his boyfriend.

Step two: Seduce him in his office, and get him to fuck his brains out.

All things considered, it was a pretty solid plan, Aventurine thought.

The seeds of it had been sown quite a long while ago, and the most he had done to help it along at the time was to stash some lube and condoms at the back of the bottom drawer of Ratio’s desk in his office at the university. Somehow, the chance never came, much to Aventurine’s disappointment.

He had missed his boyfriend like a bitch for the entirety of his work trip though, and cleaning his office had given him some fun, if not possibly inadvisable ideas. Probably no reunion sex could measure up to what he went through after returning from the Primordial Dreamscape, but he reckoned that this could be a pretty close contender, if he played his cards right.

His first meeting with Ratio had been in his Pier Point office, and it had been where Aventurine had pressed a gun into his hands and pulled the trigger for him. He’d had several fantasies for days after that of Ratio yanking the gun out his hands, bending him over his desk and fucking him until he cried, but that was neither here nor there.

Seeing as Ratio was very decidedly not at Pier Point, his mind had wandered to the next best thing.

After he finished his apples and towed all his luggage in the living room to be unpacked later, he went to go pick out a simple, but tasteful outfit for his afternoon trip. One of Ratio’s shirts, too big on him and draping over his hands, the sweater he’d stolen at the start of the trip, and that pair of pants that made his ass look good. It couldn’t be seen very well under the hem of Ratio’s giant clothes, but once they were (hopefully) off, he was sure that he’d made the right call. Aventurine might be the tits man in the relationship, but Ratio was definitely the ass man, and he was going to cash in on that without a doubt.

Although Ratio preferred baths by far, his place still had a perfectly functional shower, and it was a pretty nice one too. It was pretty good for getting cleaned up when they were in a hurry, or too messy to hop straight in the bath. They’d even fucked a few times in there, and Aventurine wasn’t ashamed to admit that despite the cold tiles at his back or nearly slipping and braining himself on the door, the shower sex they’d had was not bad at all.

Those were the memories that naturally came to mind as he worked himself open on his own fingers. Under the spray, any whimpers he let out mixed with the water and swirled down the drain. Still, he worked quickly and methodically. He might have been pent up for sure, but he was determined to come on his boyfriend’s cock, or not at all.

When he stepped out of the shower, Aventurine felt much more relaxed, which was quite the feat considering he’d ended up edging himself a few times in his attempt to get himself ready. He’d had to switch the temperature to cold at the end so that he could make his boner go down, but he reasoned that it’d perk back up soon anyway—or, in however long it took for him to make his way over to Ratio’s office at the university.

He dressed quickly, throwing on one final spritz of perfume before he left. He’d actually sent a message to Ratio earlier to let him know that he’d finished up work early, but he wasn’t expecting a reply. He was banking on the man being too busy to check his phone, and with his luck, everything would work out the way he wanted it to.

The rain had picked up a little bit when he stepped out on the street, but it was still manageable. Aventurine opened up his umbrella, and started walking out towards the University of Veritas Prime.

By now, he knew by heart the route he had to take to get to Ratio’s office building. It was a little further out from the main campus and it was one of the older buildings, but it just meant they had more room to themselves for when they had lunch together.

Ratio’s actual office was on the top floor of that building, and people needed to climb several sets of stairs to get up to it. He had been given it when he’d been awarded First Class Honours, apparently, and he’d wasted no time in making that space his own. It was perfectly soundproofed, spacious, and private, which was entirely why Aventurine had actually entertained the thought of his fun little idea beyond a fleeting fantasy.

There wasn’t many people around by the time he arrived, possibly owing to the rain, but as he made his way up the familiar stairs that led to his boyfriend’s office, he couldn’t help the warm feeling that began to settle in his chest.

Despite his intentions, he really did miss Ratio.

At the end of the hall was Ratio’s office. His door was made out of a solid dark wood and set with a golden knocker in the shape of an owl. There was a plaque on the wall that bore his name, title, and all his fancy doctorates, as though the person who was seeking him out wasn’t probably already aware of them. It was cute, really. Ratio was only ever humble when it suited him, but every other time, he was a prideful little bastard.

But this was it. All or nothing.

Aventurine lifted the knocker, and let it sound against the door three times. A moment later, Ratio’s voice echoed out from behind it, slightly muffled, but still audible.

“Come in.”

Aventurine’s heart leapt up into his throat, and he couldn’t help the way his hands shook slightly as he twisted the doorknob. Stupid. What was he getting so nervous for? It wasn’t as if he was a schoolgirl meeting her crush after hours or anything.

…Was he?

When he closed the door behind him and looked ahead, Ratio was hunched over his desk, not even looking up from his papers. His glasses were on, and the laurel hairpin he wore was slightly askew, as though he’d been running his hands through his hair in frustration. The lingering warmth in Aventurine’s chest from earlier turned into something more twisted. A regular person probably couldn’t tell, but he could see that Ratio was under some obvious stress right now. How had things gotten this bad in the span of a day?

“Whatever you have to say, make it quick,” Ratio said briskly. He still didn’t look up from his papers. “I have many things to attend to today, and no patience for—“

Okay, fuck it. Change of plan. His poor doctor needed some serious spoiling, which meant that Aventurine would have to step up his game on this one.

“—Honey, I’m home~” He singsonged, and it was only then that Ratio finally snapped his head up. The pen in his hand actually slipped from his grasp as he gaped at Aventurine. A beat of silence passed as he struggled to form a coherent thought.

“You’re… back early,” he eventually said, and Aventurine rolled his eyes. What a lukewarm response. Eight PhDs, and that was the best his boyfriend could come up with? Whatever. He could make it work, or else he wasn’t Aventurine of Stratagems.

Aventurine dumped his umbrella to the side and shucked off his sweater, hanging it up on the statue that Ratio kept by the door. As much as Ratio protested it, he’d eventually caved too, and that statue had unfortunately become the designated coat rack for the both of them.

“I thought I’d surprise you!” Aventurine continued, dropping himself into one of the chairs across from Ratio. “Man, this weather really sucks though. You’re not even in class right now, what reason do you have not to check your phone?”

At this, Ratio’s eyes darted to his phone, which was laying face down on his desk. It was a rhetorical question, mostly. Aventurine knew that he only picked up calls when he was hyperfocused on work, and not that many people called him at all. It was either him, very occasionally his parents, or even rarer than that, one of his colleagues from the Guild that he actually had some amount of respect for.

“When did you get back? Why didn’t you call me to come pick you up?”

“An hour or two ago.” Aventurine said, waving a hand dismissively. “Don’t worry about it, babe. I didn’t want to bother you when you were busy.”

“You are not a bother to me—“

“—And if you were in the middle of a class?” Aventurine countered, and Ratio cut himself off. He leant back in his chair, but he didn’t look all too happy— mostly because he knew Aventurine was right.

But that was enough screwing around. It was time for him to put his plan into action. The original plan was to make good use of that table, but seeing his poor boyfriend nearly at his wits end had changed some things for Aventurine. The table was still going to have its uses, but it was obvious that Ratio needed a real treat.

In a smooth motion, he stood up and cleared the width of Ratio’s desk in a vault, planting himself firmly on the edge closest to Ratio, which was conveniently right in his personal space as well. Ratio’s protests died in his throat the second Aventurine stretched out his leg and started stroking up his calf with the tip of his shoe.

Bingo.

Taking advantage of Ratio’s stunned silence, Aventurine leaned forward and reached out a hand, tipping his chin up with his index finger.

“I have to say, though, I missed you a lot, Veritas,” he purred. Ratio swallowed, but otherwise didn’t even blink. He kept his eyes on Aventurine, and something heated and dark pooled in Aventurine’s chest, settling possessively against his heart. The world could be burning for all he cared, and he’d let it if it meant he’d get even just one glance from Veritas Ratio. “You don’t know how lonely I was, at my place in Pier Point… Such a big bed, and I had to spend all my nights there in it by myself…”

“I was thinking of you the whole time,” Aventurine continued, dropping his voice to a low whisper. He trailed his hand down from Ratio’s chin to splay against his chest, and used that to brace himself as he leant in further to whisper in Ratio’s ear. “Nobody else knows me like you do… Nobody else fills me up like you do… Nobody else satisfies me like you do…”

Ratio shuddered, and shifted in his seat. Aventurine didn’t even have to look down to know that there would be a tent in the front of Ratio’s pants right now. It was just that easy. It meant that step one was working as planned, and he was making good progress towards step two.

He pulled back enough to slide his lips against Ratio’s own, drawing him into a heated kiss. It only took a second before Ratio’s hands found themselves on Aventurine’s waist, and his kiss eagerly returned. He nipped at Ratio’s bottom lip, and with each little breathy moan, Aventurine greedily swallowed them down whole.

When he finally pulled away, Ratio’s lips were kiss-bitten, red, and slightly swollen from his efforts. Aventurine licked his lips, throwing a smirk down to Ratio.

“Did you miss me too? My poor, sweet, doctor, all alone in his office, working late nights, getting more and more stressed without any way to vent it… Don’t worry. I know what you need.”

Showtime.

Aventurine slid himself off the desk to stand in front of Ratio, but he didn’t keep himself upright for much longer. He dropped to his knees, wriggling himself back slightly into a more comfortable position under Ratio’s desk. The hard wooden flooring wasn’t ideal, but at least it was easier than carpet to clean. He had a feeling that it was going to get messier than he anticipated, sooner than he’d anticipated.

Ratio regained his wits sometime around the time Aventurine popped the last button on his pants. By then though, it was already too late.

Ratio was already half hard when Aventurine pulled him out of his underwear, and the weight of him was hot and heavy in his palm. He’d left his usual gloves off this time around, mostly because he’d had the forethought to realise that he wanted to be able to touch Ratio all over without anything between them. Good on past Aventurine for breaking through his horny haze enough to make that decision. It was certainly paying off now.

Aventurine made to move in, but Ratio got the better of him for once, pushing Aventurine away by the side of his head. The joke was on him though—for all that he had those massive biceps on display, they did nothing when it came to Aventurine and his unabashed desire for Ratio’s cock. Instead of actually shoving Aventurine away like he probably wanted to, all it served to do was cause his cock to slide up against Aventurine’s cheek instead, smearing precome across half his face.

Aventurine took it in stride, making a second attempt to get at his prize, and this time, Ratio’s hand found its mark at the back of collar, yanking him back. Ratio’s eyes flickered upwards briefly towards the old grandfather clock that Aventurine knew he kept against the far wall of his office. It had been an antique gifted by one of his old professors when he had completed one of his doctorates, and more than once, it had jolted Aventurine awake from a good nap with its chime. He didn’t like it very much, but he kept his mouth shut about it because Ratio very obviously cherished it. Right now, he was very seriously contemplating the idea of going over to it and dropping a stack of his Imaginary chips onto it. Why the hell was Ratio so focused on that, and not the fact that Aventurine was on his knees in front of him, ready to suck him off?!

“I have a student coming any minute now, I cannot do this with you right now. Damn gambler, are you insane?!” Ratio hissed down at him, and Aventurine rolled his eyes. Like he hadn’t heard that one before—both the student excuse and the being called insane part. It was always ‘No, darling, I will not go ‘one more time’ with you, or I’m going to be late for my meeting,’ or ‘No, love, I am not going to spend the time to tie you up when I have to get ready for my practical class’. He always caved in the end, and Aventurine was sure that this would be the case this time too. After all, someone was seriously underestimating how much self control he had when it came down to it.

“Sure you can!” Aventurine chirped, reaching around to unhook Ratio’s hand from the back of his collar. He shuffled forward slightly, bracing himself against Ratio’s thighs. “And I think my friend here agrees.”

“Aventurine—“

Which was as much warning as Ratio got before Aventurine sank his mouth down on his cock, and swallowed it down to the root.

The thing about Aventurine was that he had fuck all for a gag reflex.

It was already on its way out from when he was a child and had to eat questionable things with dubious origins in order to survive. His sister really did try her best to make it palatable, but there was only so much she could do sometimes. Regrettably, the rest of it had been trained out of him by men who liked to stick their dicks into anything that could be called a hole, and by the time he had been made a Stoneheart and shoved into fancy business meetings and galas that were thinly veiled excuses to trade sexual favours for information and contracts, Aventurine had pretty much accepted that it was gone for good.

On the bright side, it made for one hell of a party trick.

Although Ratio would never admit it outright, Aventurine knew that it drove him at least a little bit crazy. On the even brighter side, unlike those men, Ratio would actually check in on him if it ever got to the point where it was actually painful—though it usually didn’t.

Admittedly, Aventurine was a bit too focused on trying to get into a more comfortable position to hear whatever noise Ratio had let out at that, but he considered it a pretty successful move when Ratio’s hand buried itself into his hair and didn’t make a move to pull him off. His other hand was clenched tightly around the end of his armrest in a white knuckled grip. Hah. So much for not being able to do this with him now, eh, Ratio?

Aventurine ignored the pinprick tears that sprung up in the corner of his eyes in favour of swallowing around the cock down his throat a few times. In the grand scheme of things, a couple tears were nothing, and the heavy groan that he got out of Ratio for it went straight to his own dick.

He could finish this quickly if he wanted.

Much to Ratio’s despair, Aventurine was indeed a quick study to anything he put his mind to, but what he put his mind to was often… not academically oriented.

In the months that they had been together, Aventurine very quickly learned which spots on Ratio’s body were the most sensitive, and what he had to do to milk his orgasms from him. If there was a degree in Ratio-ology, Aventurine would not only major in finding the best ways to make him come, but have a doctorate in it.

Even if he didn’t have a gag reflex, it still took time for him to work his way up to fitting all of his boyfriend’s dick in his mouth at once. Ratio was packing more than an IPC astral freighter, put simply, and while Aventurine wasn’t complaining, it did mean he had to put in more effort to up his game. Now, he could do it pretty easily, even if it left his throat a wreck afterwards. Ratio had immediately come down his throat the first time he’d managed it successfully, and the dopamine he’d gotten from that made it all worth it to Aventurine. Long term interest paid great dividends.

But he also had to consider his own needs, as Ratio kept lecturing him about, and right now, his needs were to drag this out and see how long it would take for the good doctor to crack.

Fuck. He’d missed this, truly.

As much as he wished he could have kept his boyfriend’s cock down his throat for longer, his lung capacity unfortunately did not match up to his lack of a gag reflex, and it was slightly mournfully that Aventurine pulled his head back—just enough that he could take in a couple of breaths through his nose. This close to Ratio, he could smell the deep muskiness that clung to this part of him, as well as the barest hint of the floral scent that Ratio preferred to wear.

“You are so—“ Ratio breathed out hoarsely, and Aventurine pulled off with a quiet pop, flashing a smirk up at him.

“Don’t try and pin this on me, babe,” he cooed. He pressed an open mouthed kiss to a spot just under the head of Ratio’s cock, and the whole thing twitched under his lips. “I don’t see this part of you complaining—“

And then, there was a knock at the door.

Ratio’s eyes instantly zeroed in on the door, and had all the blood not already rushed to his dick, then it probably would have drained from his face.

“Professor Ratio? Can I come in?”

Oh hoh ho. So the good doctor really wasn’t lying. He really did have a student scheduled to come see him.

Aventurine caught Ratio’s eye, and waggled his eyebrows at him, earning him a scowl in response.

It was a funny thing. Aventurine had seen Ratio’s brilliant mind in action countless times by now. It only took a second or two for him to solve complex equations in his head, or calculate the trajectory of a perfectly aimed chalk throw into the forehead of whichever brainless fool had ticked him off. Right now, Aventurine could say with almost complete certainty that Ratio was currently calculating his responsibilities to his students against his desire to start fucking his mouth like his life depended on it.

“If you’re busy, I can come back… tomorrow?”

Oh, now that wouldn’t do.

Without breaking eye contact, Aventurine tipped his head back slightly, and opened his mouth to take a deep breath.

Another thing about Aventurine was that he was loud.

This, also regrettably, was something he picked up in his pre-Ratio days. He had quickly realised that the louder he moaned, whoever was fucking him at the time would think that they were doing a better job than they actually were, and they wouldn’t actually notice how Aventurine would actually be lying there thinking about how he could literally be doing anything else. It was a performance art, and he was damn good at it. Even a Masked Fool couldn’t have done better.

It wasn’t until he started sleeping around with Ratio that he actually stopped faking it. The first time he had tried one of his certified ‘Avgin whore’ moans on Ratio, the man had gotten so unbelievably annoyed that he had flipped Aventurine over, and promptly pounded him to the point that he couldn’t form any conscious thought, let alone vocalise them. It was one of the scant handful of times that Aventurine had actually been struck silent by pleasure and his mouth wasn’t otherwise occupied by anything else at the time.

Of course, over time, as he became more familiar with Ratio and the dick that was attached to him, that loudness came back with a vengeance. It wasn’t even that Aventurine had to fake it. No, it was because Ratio was literally just that good at making him come undone. His mind might have clocked out, but his mouth kept running on autopilot, and as it turned out, that was very much him being excessively vocal. He had to show his appreciation somehow, and this was one of the better ways to do it — Even if it did net them a noise complaint once or twice whenever they went on a trip somewhere.

Ratio’s eyes flickered back to the door, and in that instant, Aventurine knew that he had made his final decision. He’d laid out a trap, and even though Ratio knew it was there, he still willingly walked into it, and now, he had fallen for it—

Hook, line and sinker.

When he glanced back down at Aventurine, only a ring of amber was left in Ratio’s eyes, completely swallowed up by the dark of his pupils as they were.

“Be quiet,” he hissed. It was all the warning Aventurine got before Ratio buried a hand in his hair, and yanked him forward, hard, onto his waiting cock.

Aventurine didn’t choke, but it was a near thing.

He didn’t gag, because that was something that he simply didn’t do anymore, but he did almost choke, because any person would if they had to suddenly swallow down a huge mouthful of cock. As far as he was concerned, they were two completely different things. One of them had him actively running the risk of throwing up while the other was just a mild inconvenience at its worst, and one hell of a kink at best.

Above him, he vaguely registered Ratio ushering his student in, and the rustling of clothes as whoever it was took a seat in the chair he had been occupying only moments before.

Aventurine really couldn’t hold this position for all too much longer though. Granted, Ratio throwing him into the first stage of a facefuck of his own volition was extremely hot of him, but he was losing points for not following through on it.

At almost the exact moment he thought that though, the grip Ratio had on his head loosened slightly, and a hand carded soothingly through his hair before it lifted away to reach for a drawer. Ugh. Bastard. Even when he was rough, he was sweet. When that hand didn’t instantly return as Aventurine slowly eased Ratio’s cock out of his throat, he dropped his head onto Ratio’s thigh for a quick breather.

Ratio was murmuring something to his student and Aventurine only caught a few words out of it all. ‘Philosophy’, ‘workshop’, ‘supplementary’—his voice was remarkably even for someone who was getting his dick sucked (kind of) mere minutes ago. It couldn’t fool Aventurine though. He heard every tiny hitch of breath and stumbled syllable in Ratio’s voice as he tongued lazily at the rest of the length left in his mouth.

Hmm… a good effort on his part, but Aventurine would see how he’d hold up with what he had planned next. It took two to play a game, and he wasn’t about to lose now.

He’d stay quiet for now, but that was mainly for Ratio’s benefit than his. Was Aventurine actually a little freak who was actually getting off on the idea of possibly getting caught giving head under the table like in a shitty porno?

Well, quite frankly, yes.

Granted, this particular kink he didn’t know he had until literally just then, but as far as he was concerned, it was just another one to add onto the pile. Keeping his noise to a minimum was more so for keeping his options open in the future. It wouldn’t do to actually get caught and banned from the premises or else he’d be locking himself out of more fun later on.

He had to be pretty careful about how he did this, but Aventurine was nothing if not calculated. He drew back slowly until only the head of Ratio’s cock was left in his mouth, wrapped his lips right around the tip, and dug his tongue into the slit. Above him, Ratio let out a strangled cry that he quickly turned into a heavy cough. Ooh. That was a good save, but he couldn’t use that one again, and Aventurine was going to make sure of it.

“Um… professor, is everything alright?” The student’s voice floated out timidly from the other side of the desk, and Aventurine almost wanted to laugh. He didn’t, as that would have defeated the purpose of his self imposed vow of silence, but if only they knew what was happening right now. Ratio could try and pretend he was the aloof and respectable professor that he wanted everyone to believe he was, but Aventurine knew who he really was. Ratio could deny it all he wanted, but he was just as perverted and degenerate as Aventurine was. They truly were perfect for each other.

“E-everything is fine. Please, continue.”

Ratio was so close to cracking, Aventurine just knew it. Just a bit more, and he’d either get the show of his life, or go through one of the most embarrassing moments of his life. It was a gamble, and he felt pretty good about his odds.

…But he really had to hurry things up soon. His own dick was starting to ache, and if Ratio didn’t clue in and start wrapping things up, then Aventurine couldn’t be held accountable for what would happen next. He’d had his share of fun from this part of his plan, and he was ready to start moving onto the next.

Maybe he needed more of a reminder.

Aventurine started off with small, kittenish licks around the head of Ratio’s cock first before he really went at it, alternating swirling his tongue and suckling lightly. From above, Ratio completely stilled. His answer to his student went unfinished as he trailed off halfway.

Slowly, but surely, Aventurine eased himself back down along the length in his mouth until his nose hit the neat trim of hair at the base of Ratio’s cock, held it there for a few seconds, and pulled back again. He repeated this a few times, and with each time, he heard Ratio’s breathing get heavier and heavier as he tried to get himself under control.

“Um… Professor, are you sure you’re alright? You really don’t look well…”

“I…”

That was his cue. As he pulled back this time, he added the gentlest scrape of teeth to the underside of Ratio’s cock, and the man honest to goddess groaned. It was quiet, but it was all Aventurine needed to know that he’d won, and the student, bless their heart, seemed to stand up. There was the sound of a chair scraping against the floor and a hurried rustling of paper.

“You know what, it’s fine! This is enough. Thank you for all your help. I’ll get going, and uh… you just rest up, okay professor? Don’t stay out too late! I know how it is. The weather’s just terrible these days. It’s too easy to get sick, haha!”

Ratio couldn’t even manage a response to that.

The moment those footsteps had faded away, Aventurine finally took the chance to look up at Ratio. He’d been so focused on the task at hand that he hadn’t been keeping track of anything other than what he could hear.

The student was gone now though, which meant Aventurine could finally let loose a little bit. Vow of silence time was over—he could be as loud as he wanted.

He tucked a strand of hair behind his ear and peered up at Ratio from under his lashes. Ratio’s student really hadn’t been exaggerating. The good doctor looked like a mess. A thin sheen of sweat had broken out over his face, and his eyes were unfocused and distant when he gazed back down at Aventurine. It was easy to assume that he might have been powering through some sort of illness like a champ, but the signs of just being extremely fucking horny in the man were painfully obvious to Aventurine, who was entirely the reason for it in the first place.

Oh well. Let him be. There was nobody else around now, after all.

Aventurine got back to it like a man possessed. The tiny space under the desk became his own personal echo chamber as he moaned and slurped messily at the cock in his mouth. Some of the noises bouncing around underneath the desk were definitely his, but he wouldn’t be surprised if some of Ratio’s own moans were mixed into that too. Somewhere along the line, both of Ratio’s hands found themselves winding into Aventurine’s hair again, not quite tugging at it but not quite running through it either.

“Aventurine, I—“ Ratio choked out, and Aventurine paused for just a moment. He glanced up at Ratio, catching his eye, and in that instant, a wordless silence passed between them that spoke of everything the both of them needed to know. Aventurine closed his eyes and gave a tiny nod of his head.

Go ahead, use me as you wish. If it’s you, then anything….

Ratio’s grip in his hair tightened to hold his head in place, and he began to fuck earnestly into Aventurine’s mouth. All he could do was sit there and take it as with each thrust, tears gathered in his eyes and spit spilled from around his lips, dripping down his chin. The world narrowed down to just him on his knees and Ratio’s cock, slamming mercilessly down his throat. With each stroke, Aventurine swore he went deeper and deeper until in all of his lust-filled haze, he wasn’t sure where he ended and Ratio began.

Maybe years had passed, but some part of Aventurine’s logical brain registered that it had maybe only been a minute or two that had gone by before Ratio was coming into his mouth with a guttural groan, falling back in his seat.

Thick spurts of come hit his tongue, heady and hot, and Aventurine gulped down each one like the greedy bastard he was. Waste not, want not, as they said, and he’d never been one for wasting food. He’d spent half his life hungry and begging for scraps, and if a full course meal like Ratio’s cock and come was being delivered, quite literally, into his mouth, then who was Aventurine to argue against that?

After he swallowed down the last mouthful, he wasted no time in getting up to crawl into Ratio’s lap and slot their mouths together in a hungry kiss. His legs prickled with pins and needles, and his own, still clothed erection pressed painfully against the front of his pants, but he could bear it all for a minute longer as he lost himself in the velvet heat of Ratio’s mouth.

When he finally broke off for air, a long string of saliva trailed after him, snapping and falling between them. Ratio was just as breathless as he was, and Aventurine couldn’t help but to pull him in for another kiss, this time quick and chaste at the corner of his mouth.

“Mm… You know, I can’t tell you how long I’ve been waiting for a chance to do that,” he murmured sweetly against Ratio’s lips, and Ratio reared his head back to stare incredulously at Aventurine.

“You— This— In my office— really?” He stammered, and Aventurine leered at him, trailing his hands up Ratio’s torso. He was only wearing a fairly simple button up today alongside a thick cardigan, much to Aventurine’s delight. Very easy to take off. He started picking his way down Ratio’s buttons, popping each one open to reveal his boyfriend’s toned chest. Why a scholar needed such huge fucking tits the size of a moon each, he’d never know, but fuck if Aventurine didn’t love them.

“Well, it was actually my office first, bu-ut—” Aventurine pressed closer. The slightest grind of his dick against Ratio’s stomach had him moaning. Fuck, why had he worn these pants again? Just because they made his ass look good? Past him might have had the right idea with skipping the gloves, but he had really dropped the ball on picking something that didn’t make his dick feel like it was in a pressure cooker. He really needed out of these. “I like yours better. And not exactly like that, but what can I say, I’m— ah! F-flexible.”

“You are utterly incorrigible,” Ratio growled, and Aventurine would be lying if the sound of his voice didn’t send a shiver down his spine.

“And if I am, then what are you–oh!” The rest of Aventurine’s teasing quickly turned into a yelp as Ratio hooked his fingers into the waistband of his pants and yanked them down alongside his underwear in one harsh pull. He hissed as his aching dick met the cool air. Fucking finally.

He shimmied the rest of his pants down to his ankles and kicked them off to the side along with his shoes before readjusting himself in Ratio’s lap.

More importantly, Aventurine could feel Ratio’s cock begin to stir up again from where it was pressed against his bare ass. And people thought he was the insatiable one as well. This stuffy doctor had the stamina of a horse and he was hung like one too.

Ratio’s hands settled on Aventurine’s waist as he grinded down onto Ratio’s rapidly fattening cock. Step two… step two… what had that been again? Step two… Ah, right.

“Bottom… bottom drawer,” Aventurine whined, reaching back for Ratio’s desk, and Ratio narrowed his eyes, leaning forward to pull it open. His movement had him brushing against Aventurine’s cock again and he keened loudly.

Eventually, Ratio’s fingers closed around the bottle of lube that Aventurine had stashed there weeks prior, but he didn’t get any of the condoms. Whatever then. He could work with Ratio coming in his ass.

It took a second for Ratio to register what he was holding, but once he did, his erection throbbed against Aventurine’s ass, and he cackled in response.

“When did you… Were you so certain that this would happen?!”

“It’s happening right now, isn’t it? So I’d—hah—say so, yeah!”

Before Ratio could retort, Aventurine plucked the bottle from his hands and popped it open. He poured out a generous amount onto his fingers before tossing it aside. They could grab that later. Working quickly, he reached back to slick up his boyfriend’s cock, and Ratio shuddered beneath him.

“Just sit back and relax, babe,” Aventurine purred. “I’m—mm—not done with you yet.”

Checking that he was still stretched and open was a quick and rushed affair. One finger, two—just to spread around a bit of lube, then out again. Maybe not the most advisable, but Aventurine was so horny he had barely managed to remember to use it anyway, and from the way Ratio’s cock was dripping with it, he hoped it would be enough. Probably. Hopefully.

With one hand he reached behind him for Ratio’s cock, while with the other he braced himself against Ratio’s thigh. Aventurine lifted his hips up slightly, lined himself up, and let himself drop right onto his boyfriend’s dick.

For a brief, singular moment, his mind whited out with pure, carnal pleasure—the exact moment that a star exploded into supernova. When he snapped back into reality, Ratio’s hands were cupping his face, and his eyes were wild with concern.

“Are you out of your mind, gambler?!” He snapped, frantic. He always did this when he was annoyed over Aventurine, though… he didn’t really know if annoyed was the right word to use here. “You—I don’t even—!“

“I’m.. I’m fine,” Aventurine panted, lifting his own hands to place them over Ratio’s own. “I— got myself ready for you. Earlier. Just… Just one sec…”

Great Gaiathra, a few days away from Ratio, and he’d already lost his touch. Aventurine hadn’t been a virgin for a very long time now, but here he was, acting all overwhelmed from even the slightest of touches.

…Well. Granted, he did have a massive cock shoved up his ass, but he at least used to have a better threshold for this kind of thing. Maybe a couple more rounds in the next few days would get it back up to snuff. Yeah. That sounded good.

As Aventurine tried to get his breathing back under control, Ratio’s lips pursed, and his thumbs started stroking over Aventurine’s face.

“…Are you alright?” He asked quietly, all his previous outrage now washed away by gentle concern. Aventurine’s heart seized. Fuck. He really did not deserve this man. Anyone else would have taken his answer at face value, but not Ratio. Never Ratio. “You don’t have to do this.”

He really did. Sometimes, Aventurine thought that Ratio knew him better than he knew himself, but at other times, there were still things that fell through the gaps. Aventurine wanted this, plain and simple. He wanted Ratio, and he wanted this moment to themselves where they could both lose themselves in pleasure.

Aventurine dropped his hands away from his face and wrapped them around Ratio’s neck, drawing him into a gentle hug. His movement shifted the mass inside him, drawing out a whimper from him, and he shivered.

“I’m fine. You… you just worry about yourself. Now…” He drew back, and licked his lips. “Indulge me a little, will you?”

In an instant, exasperation settled back over Ratio, and he slid his hands back down to circle Aventurine’s waist.

“I already do that far too much—“ He began sourly, and Aventurine slapped a hand over his mouth.

“That’s not what I need you to say right now,” he said. This hadn’t been in his original agenda, but being in the right place at the right time had given him even more fun ideas. It was simple, compounding interest. “Hm… Let’s see… How about I start you off with something easy? I’ll throw you a bone.”

Leaning forward slightly, Aventurine plastered himself against Ratio’s chest and looked up at him through his lashes.

“Professor, I’m here. You said to come see you after class, right…? Did I do something… wrong?” He added a touch of artificially sweet uncertainty to his voice. This one was a classic. It was his go to around the start of his career, and it hadn’t failed him yet, even against Ratio. “Have I been a bad student…?”

… Though maybe Aventurine had jumped the gun on that one a little. Saying this when he wasn’t currently sitting on Ratio’s lap with his cock up his ass might have been the better play, but this was how the dice had fallen, and Aventurine was going to make it his bitch.

Ratio was silent for a moment too long. When he finally spoke out again, it was with a groan that was very decidedly unsexy. He pinched at the bridge of his nose and shook his head, aiming a glare at Aventurine.

“…You cannot be serious right now. I am not doing that with you,” he said flatly.

Aventurine’s grin dropped. He slid his hand up and tugged at one of Ratio’s nipples in revenge, letting the thrill of delight he got at seeing Ratio jerk under his touch settle in his gut.

“Ugh, killjoy,” he said, rolling his eyes. “You’re so unsexy sometimes, I swear. Can’t you at least just try to play along?”

“We are in a public place where anyone could come along. In fact, someone did, and it was a miracle that they didn’t question it further. I have a reputation to maintain,” Ratio hissed, and Aventurine rolled his eyes again. It was a bit late for that, he thought.

“Not a miracle, just a stroke of luck. Come on, doctor, you’re always telling me that if I’m coming along to your classes, I should be paying more attention, that I’m smart enough that I could understand it all if I just— applied myself…” Aventurine ground his hips down, his breath catching in his throat, and Ratio’s mouth dropped open in a wordless groan of pleasure. “Well? Here I am. Applying myself.”

It took another long moment before Ratio spoke again. Like before, Aventurine could tell he was calculating. Something to do with his dignity and the tight heat of Aventurine’s hole. Just for good measure though, Aventurine grinded his hips down again, adding on a wanton moan as a bonus—

And Ratio folded like a wet paper bag.

“… Perhaps if you paid more attention in class, then this trip wouldn’t be necessary,” Ratio murmured, fixing his gaze onto Aventurine. His entire demeanour had shifted, and now he was looking at Aventurine with something dark and hungry in his eyes.

“That’s more like it. Good boy,” Aventurine replied smugly, and he barked out a tiny laugh when Ratio’s erection pulsed inside of him. Someday, he’d make full use of that little praise kink his boyfriend had. Not today though. Today…

“Ungh… but doctor, it’s just so… hard.” He clenched down on Ratio’s cock inside him with a whine, and Ratio let out a small, choked noise in response. “I don’t know what to do… I think I need some private lessons… I do much better in one on one sessions, you see…”

Goddess. He really was spewing some shit again.

“Private lessons… very well. Perhaps that is in order,” Ratio said, and Aventurine tilted his head back, summoning a few tears to his eyes and a relieved smile to his face. Learning to cry on command had never been more useful.

“A-ah—Thank you, professor. I’m not— I won’t— let you down—Let me—hah—show you what I know so far…”

Yeah. He really didn’t know what he was saying anymore. But he’d put in all this work, so… it was time to cash out his prize.

Aventurine raised his hips up until only the head of Ratio’s cock was left inside him, and then slammed himself back down. No less overwhelming than the first time, the force of it knocked the air from his lungs and sparks of bliss shot up his spine all the way to his head. A moan fell from his lips, high and breathy, and louder than any of the ones he’d let loose so far.

Raise hips, slam down, moan—Aventurine quickly fell into a steady rhythm as he bounced himself on Ratio’s cock. He let the last of his remaining conscious thought slip away and left the reins to his filthy mouth. Whatever came out of it was whatever he’d deal with. Right now, he was nothing but his boyfriend’s personal fuck toy; helping the man let loose after a long and frustrating day.

“I’m—haah—A v-visual learner—oh fuck—I need—I need hands on experience—!”

His next thrust had Ratio’s cock nail him right on the prostate, and the keen that ripped itself from his throat was so high and loud that he was sure that if one of Ratio’s busts were there, he would have cracked it from the force of his voice alone. The fingers at his hips dug in deeply, and Aventurine was sure that there would be bruises there the next day, if not by the end of the night.

Heat climbed in his gut, and Aventurine’s pace became more and more frantic as he chased his oncoming climax. With how it was going, he felt like he could probably come from just this alone— Ratio’s death grip on his hips and the way Ratio’s own hips twitched up weakly to try and meet his.

But halfway through Aventurine’s next thrust, Ratio’s hands shifted and locked him in place, stopping him from reaching that maddeningly intense spot inside him. Fuck. Fuck! What the hell was Ratio doing?! Here Aventurine was, loose and sloppy holed in his lap, just short of begging for it, and he was just—stopping?!

“E-enough. Zero—ugh… zero points,” Ratio panted out, and Aventurine actually did almost sob. With the iron grip that Ratio had on his hips, he couldn’t move even if he wanted to. The most he could do was tighten around the cock inside him, whining.

Fine then. If Ratio wanted to be like that, then Aventurine would just have to up the ante.

He threw himself back against Ratio’s chest and forced a couple of big, fat, crocodile tears to his eyes. Not too hard, considering he was so fucking close and couldn’t do anything about it.

“Nooo—please, professor, I have to— I’m not done— I need to pass—“ Aventurine wailed, and Ratio grimaced slightly.

Was that what he’d gone with before? He’d already forgotten. He was too fucking desperate to care. It was probably close enough, or something like that.

“Enough. It’s—ugh—obvious where you are lacking. Your technique is careless and imprecise. It is no wonder you are failing your class.”

Careless.

Imprecise.

Was he fucking serious?!?

Aventurine actually got so offended that it broke him out of character, and his haze of arousal. There was no way he put all of his slutty little heart into that just to be given zero points. He knew all of his boyfriend’s tells, and it was obvious that he was extremely fucking into it, so why was he being such a bitch about it?!

“Veritas…” he growled threateningly, and Ratio looked away guiltily. Good. Let him sweat. See if Aventurine ever did anything nice for him after that. All this effort to treat him to something nice, and this was how he was repaid?

“That is— I mean—“ Ratio coughed lightly. When he looked back up at Aventurine, the slightly apologetic look he had melted away into something more serious. “You have immense potential, and I would hate for you to squander it.”

Something flashed in his eyes, and a split second later, the hands around Aventurine’s hips lifted him up effortlessly, and he slammed him back down onto his cock, bucking deep into him.

Aventurine might have damn near screamed.

He definitely blacked out for at least half a second, and he fell forward onto Ratio, gripping onto his arms for dear life as Ratio fucked into him ruthlessly.

“Consider this a—practical demonstration then,” Ratio began, and Aventurine couldn’t even reply behind the sounds of his own lewd moans and skin slapping against skin.

“Commit this feeling to memory,” Ratio snarled, tearing Aventurine’s hands away from his arms to arrange them onto his own stomach. With each thrust, Aventurine felt the outline of Ratio’s cock pressing up against his stomach. Holy shit. Holy shit. “This is what you should be aiming for. Do you know what that is?”

Aventurine opened his mouth to respond, but he couldn’t manage anything other than a chain of punched out cries. The one time he needed his voice, and he couldn’t summon up any reply at all. Ratio growled irritably, and started ramming himself in even deeper.

“Well? Answer me.”

“It’s—It’s your cock, professor!” Aventurine eventually managed to gasp out. He had no idea if that was the answer Ratio was expecting, but it was the only one he could give. “Your huge cock, inside me—guh—teaching me—mm—a lesson…”

“Very good. Now, listen closely. Take it well, and take it deep. If you cannot feel my cock in your stomach each time I am fucking you, if you cannot remember even then— “

Ratio’s pace became even more frenzied, and the rhythm that he had set began to blur into irregularity as he approached his tipping point. Aventurine threw his hips down to meet him with each stroke, and real tears actually dripped down his face when Ratio’s hand closed tightly around his neglected and weeping cock.

Ratio’s fingers twisted, and Aventurine came into his hand with a shrill scream. The building pressure inside of him erupted into a torrent of molten ecstasy, burning his pleasure into every one of his nerves. Without thinking, he clenched down on Ratio inside him, and it must have been the last straw for the man too, because then, the thick heat of Ratio’s come was flooding his insides as Ratio shuddered beneath him.

Aventurine slumped forward bonelessly, and Ratio dragged him into a deep kiss, running his clean hand through Aventurine’s hair. They didn’t do much else but stay there and kiss lazily for a while, even though Ratio’s softening cock was still inside Aventurine.

Eventually, Ratio sat up slightly. Aventurine pulled a face as Ratio wiped off his come on the inside of his thigh, but it quickly turned into a whimper as Ratio hooked his arm around Aventurine and stood up to go for the tissue box on his desk.

It wasn’t until was gently wiping off the both of them that Aventurine risked a peek up at Ratio. He was focused intently on his work, even though his bangs were all mussed and sweaty. His eyes were clear again, glimmering like the sunrise, and all Aventurine could think about was how gorgeous this man was, and how utterly lucky he was to be able to call Veritas Ratio his.

His. Nobody else in the universe had him like he did.

“So… doctor—“ He started, biting back a wince. Damn. His voice was shot to hell. He really let loose, huh? “Am I going to fail? Or am I going to pass?”

“Hmm…”

That being said, if Ratio fucking lied about his performance one more time, he was going to walk right out and never speak to him again. He needed to stick to his books and let Aventurine handle the performance evaluations.

“Full points, naturally. My most promising student needs no further instruction.” Ratio kissed the top of his head, and Aventurine breathed out a sigh of relief. That was great then. “But never do that again.”

Yeah, no. Aventurine was totally going to get Ratio to fuck him in this office again.

He lifted up his arms and threw them over Ratio’s shoulders, cuddling close. His boyfriend’s exasperated sigh gusted over his forehead, but all Aventurine did was smile, tucking his face into the crook of Ratio’s neck.

“I hope you realise I will not be carrying you home,” he said dryly, and Aventurine yawned.

“Yeah, yeah, whatever… I’ll get up in a sec, I just wanna… let me take a break…”

Aventurine closed his eyes. That… had been exhausting. It was great, but it was exhausting, and he’d already had a big day. A break definitely was in order.

A gentle touch of lips pressed against his forehead, and Ratio’s throat hummed reassuringly beside Aventurine’s head.

“… Welcome home, love.”

Aventurine was finally home.

Chapter Text

I KNOW WHAT YOU ARE. I KNOW WHAT YOU DID. YOU MAKE ME SICK. I ALWAYS KNEW YOU WERE NO BETTER THAN ANY OTHER MAN. YOU KNOW WHAT IM TALKING ABOUT. IF YOU DONT WANT YOUR DIRTY LITTLE SECRET EXPOSED TO THE WHOLE UNIVERSITY, COME TO ROOM 489 IN THE MARINE BUILDING AT 9PM IN TWO DAYS TIME AND THEN WE CAN TALK.

Chapter Text

Chapter Text

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On the whole, Veritas would say his life had gotten much more… interesting, as of late.

Interesting, though, was just a nice way of putting into words the absolute whirlwind of change that becoming romantically involved with Aventurine of Stratagems brought.

The trouble began on Penacony, officially. Unofficially, it was when they had met for the first time and Aventurine had thought it would be better to introduce himself with a loaded gun instead of a handshake, as normal business meetings went. Then, their second meeting had been at an IPC mandated gala, Aventurine caught him by the wrist, smirked and said — “You look bored, doctor. Say, how about we get out of here?” — and the rest was history.

He was no stranger to the way that Aventurine worked. Their first meeting was a testament to that. Credit had to be given where it was due—it was an excellent way to introduce the way that Aventurine handled his business and his missions, but that did not mean Veritas liked it.

He liked it less and less as time went by and they spent more and more days and nights together in between missions, hotel rooms and spare rooms at function halls. But he could not stay away. When the time came where they were partnered together for actual missions, Veritas found that he could not stay away then too. Like a moth to a flame, he found himself drawn into Aventurine’s blazing heat and effervescent warmth both.

Aventurine was a fool, but he was not stupid. He was far from it. Whenever he was in a room, it was not just his flashy clothes and personality that turned heads. Underneath the layers of flattery and charm, there was a razor’s edge to him that cut through defences with ease—so much so that whoever it cut didn’t even realise until it was too late.

And for Veritas Ratio, it was far too late.

If Aventurine was flame, then Veritas could only hold him in his hands as he threatened to burn himself out. He was bright, brilliant, and bold, forging a path ahead for himself at every turn. He was everything Veritas was not, and everything he wanted to be.

But even though Aventurine was flame, he did not burn Veritas at all.

With Veritas, he was only ever warm. A flickering candle, or a gently crackling fireplace– glimpses of a heart carefully locked away, a mystery that Veritas was determined to solve not for the sake of solving it, but so that he might better understand the person amidst the swirling storm of ash and cinders.

And slowly, slowly, Veritas Ratio came to realise–

He had fallen deeply in love with Aventurine.

He should have left it there when he realised the extent of his growing feelings.

Nothing good could come of loving a reckless gambler who bet his own life without sparing a single consideration for the feelings of others. The logical part of Veritas told him to walk away now, before the worst came to pass, and left him with nothing but a broken heart and a cracked dice to show for it. The softer parts of his heart demanded him to follow his instinct and to yearn for what he could not have. What he wanted… he wanted to be able to kiss Aventurine under the sun and the stars, to hold him as they fell asleep and woke up together, to listen to him laugh every day–

As it stood, those were all current impossibilities. He did not even know if Aventurine thought of him in the same way, or if he would let himself be loved.

But Veritas could not help himself. He could never help himself when it came to what his heart wanted.

They always came back to each other, because Veritas, if only for even the slightest chance that he could keep his beloved gambler safe for one more day, he would take it. Always.

Always, until they didn’t, or couldn’t.

Aventurine had called him two days before he was set to leave for Penacony’s Charmony Festival.

“Hey, doctor,” he had purred over the phone. Damn gambler. “A little birdy told me you’ve snagged a VIP invitation to the Planet of Festivities. What a coincidence. So have I! I think we can make our time there together a little… worthwhile. What do you say?”

He did not mean sex, for once.

He did not mean much at all, when Aventurine had slid into the seat next to his when they both boarded the ship that would take them to Penacony and began chattering away at him about all the things he thought might be fun there.

But he asked Veritas to trust him, when the time came, and Veritas, his fool heart beating in his fool chest, stupidly agreed.

And with his fool heart and all its hopes and dreams, he gave Aventurine his prescription, in the hopes that maybe, just this once—

Veritas did not stick around in the Dreamscape after that. Instead, he returned to reality. Beside him in the Dreampool lay Aventurine, deep asleep and dreaming of a bittersweet dream. Having given his own room to that Trailblazer of the Astral Express, he could only come crawling to Veritas to beg off a room share with him. He had mentioned something about leaving the rest of the booked time to him, but Veritas did not know where he got the assumption that he would leave after his business on Penacony was done, nor did he correct him. After all, eyes and ears were everywhere on the Planet of Festivities, even in the waking world.

He climbed out of the Dreampool, showered, redressed, drank some water, and took up a seat at the coffee table, reading through a book on memoria that he had brought with him. He scanned the page once, twice, five times, turned the page, and did it again. He did not remember any of the information from it at all.

When he finished the book, Aventurine was still in the Dreampool. He set it down and crossed the distance of the room to take Aventurine’s hand in his own. Even though he was so still he almost looked like he was— he was— his hand was still warm in Veritas’ own.

It was all he had.

For a long time there, Veritas waited. He was not a gambling man, but this time, he had made one. He had gambled on Aventurine, and he had wagered that he could come back alive. He’d bet his own heart on it, and if he lost… he stood to lose everything.

All in.

He did not know long had passed. It could have been hours or it could have been minutes, but lost in thought as he was, the twitch of the fingers he held in his hand was more than enough to pull him from his mind and back to reality.

Aventurine came to very gradually.

First was the fluttering of his eyes, then another twitch of his fingers. A soft sigh escaped from his parted lips, and bleary pink and blue eyes cracked open to meet Veritas’ own.

“Wow, am I in heaven? Because I think I’m seeing an angel—“

He did not get to finish his statement, because it was cut off with a coughing fit.

But it was enough for Veritas.

Aventurine was alive.

Aventurine was alive.

He had won his gamble, and to the victor came the spoils.

“Don’t be foolish, you damn gambler,” he had thrown out. His words were thick with worry and choked him as they caught in his throat, but he forced them out anyway. “Are you quite alright?”

He helped Aventurine sit up in the Dreampool, the glowing liquid flowing off his clothes and rippling the surface of the pool. His heart thundered painfully in his chest.

“The light of your Cornerstone faded completely,” he continued, and Aventurine exhaled softly, closing his eyes. “You died— you— not only did you see fit to break it, but to risk your life—“

And there was still the fallout of that particular action to come as well. Veritas knew how valuable those Cornerstones were to the Stonehearts. They had taken an oath to protect them with their lives, and Aventurine had—

“That? Hm, it’s not important.” Aventurine cut him off suddenly, and Veritas fell silent—partly in shock, and partly just because whatever Aventurine said, he would always listen. “You know, Ratio, I have something important to tell you.”

He reached for Veritas’ hand, taking it into his own, and Veritas stilled, his breath catching in his throat.

This was not—Surely, it couldn’t be that—

Aventurine began to run his thumb over Veritas’ knuckles. He was still wearing his gloves, and they were still slightly damp from the dreampool fluid, but with each pass over each ridged bump, Veritas swore he felt pricks of heat burst with every touch. Aventurine lowered his eyes, his lashes fanning out across the tops of his cheeks.

“In the Dreamscape, after that Emanator slashed her blade… I got your message. I… don’t know how to thank you. After I read it, I think I realised a lot of things.

“I want to live. I’m not ready to die yet. And… I know how you feel. I want to tell you… I feel the same way.”

When Aventurine finally looked back up at him, his eyes were shining. Love, gratitude, affection–Veritas did not know with what, but there was a light to them that he had only seen the barest hints of before, in the moments where Aventurine may not have known he was looking.

Veritas’s heart stuttered in his chest, and he froze. All he could feel was the weight of Aventurine’s hand in his own, all he could hear was the sound of his own, hitched breaths, and then the sight of Aventurine moving in as–

Aventurine–

–kissed him.

His lips were as cool as his hands, slightly dry from the stilled air of the hotel room, but they were as soft as a dream, and Veritas had dreamed of this moment for an eternity.

(He could not help himself with what he wanted.)

(But… wasn’t this a little too picture-perfect?)

Aventurine’s kiss turned more insistent, and swept along by the force of the kiss, Veritas let him take what he wanted from him. Whatever Aventurine wanted, he would gladly give, if only to keep him in his arms a moment longer–

With a surprising amount of force for someone who looked as slight as he did, Aventurine pulled Veritas into the Dreampool where he was still half-sitting, sending gushes of pearlescent liquid over the edge and onto the floor of the hotel room. He fell half onto Aventurine, stopped from collapsing completely over him by the arm he had thrown out to brace himself. The dream fluid soaked through Veritas’ clothes in the strange, lightly sticky way that it did, and he shivered. Aventurine’s hands slipped down from his arms along Veritas’ sides, eventually hooking into the waistband of his pants under his sashes.

They had been in this situation before, countless times, but it was so different this time.

Aventurine panted against his lips as broke away for a moment to take in breaths. Again, he looked back up to Veritas, and again, his eyes held a light to them that Veritas simply could not–

—The last of the pieces of the puzzle clicked in his mind, and Veritas realised with an alarming clarity—

As much as this was what Veritas had dreamed about, had hoped for—

This was not real.

He froze, but the man beneath him did not. It was not until he felt his sashes and belts begin to fall away under the dream-Aventurine’s skilled hands that he jolted back into total realisation. His hands clamped around thin wrists before they could pull away any more layers of clothes.

“Stop this—Aventurine, stop—“

The ghost of the man he loved stilled, and from his too-alive eyes, tears began to well up.

“Ratio, I don’t understand…” He whispered, his mouth twisting with hurt and desperation. He tried to tug his hands away from Veritas, but Veritas held firm. “Don’t you want this? Don’t you want me?”

Veritas swallowed thickly, suddenly at a loss for words.

“I…”

What could he even say here?

Of course Veritas wanted him. Of course Veritas wanted this– whatever Aventurine could give him, whatever he did, Veritas wanted to return thousandfold–

But this was not the real Aventurine, and the real one deserved better than this. He deserved better than the dregs of a desperate Veritas, chasing at the last drops of a sweet dream just to glaze together the broken pieces of his sugar glass heart.

And quite suddenly, he found that he could not stay where he was anymore.

Veritas let go of the dream-Aventurine’s hands and sat back on his heels. He closed his eyes, drawing the back of his hand over his face.

“This is nothing more than a dream,” he muttered.

Somewhere, somehow, he had been lulled into a deep dream and tempted with what he wished for most. The dark happenings that had been stirring in Penacony’s underbelly were likely to be rearing their heads right now, and all he could do was sleep, totally unaware of it all.

For a while, there was only silence. Whatever had happened to the false Aventurine, he did not know.

But eventually, a calm voice rang through the air, familiar yet strange at the same time.

“...So you figured it out, huh?”

Gentle hands pried away Veritas’ own from his face, and he let them. When he opened his eyes, he was looking at the dream’s spectre, who wore a somewhat sad, yet resigned expression on his own face.

“…The real Aventurine would never let himself be this open around me,” Veritas found himself saying. “The real Aventurine… he would never want this. You… are just a figment of my imagination.”

At this, the ghost closed his eyes, his head tipping back in a slight laugh.

“Haha! Maybe I am, maybe I’m not.” He reaffixed his gaze onto Veritas, tilting his head. “Who can say? You… you’re very sweet, though. I’ll give you that.”

“I am as I always am.”

He shook his head.

“Don’t be so harsh on yourself, doctor,” he said, shifting around in the Dreampool to slot himself into the space beside Veritas. Veritas tensed slightly, mindful of his actions lest a repeat of the situation from before occur, but the ghost simply seemed content to sit there, sharing in his warmth.

“It’s really no wonder at all that he loves you,” he murmured, laying his head on Veritas’ shoulder, and Veritas’ heart leapt up into his throat.

“You’re just saying what you think I want to hear,” he said stiffly, and the ghost chuckled. He did not reply, but he did slip his hands down to twine their fingers together. When he next spoke again, it was followed with a reassuring squeeze of Veritas’ hand.

“The dream… is coming to an end,” he said aloud. “When you get back… won’t you tell him how you really feel?

“If he’s anything like me, then… I know he’ll feel the same. Trust me. And if you don’t… why not gamble on it?”

It was only then that Veritas let himself look at the shade, who tilted his head at him slightly, and smiled. Somehow, that tiny smile felt like the closest he had ever been to being like the real Aventurine.

“Heh. Catch you next time, dear doctor.”

In a rush of bubbles, the man of his dreams disappeared before his eyes—

And Veritas woke up.

Beside him, Aventurine (the real Aventurine, he desperately hoped) lay in the Dreampool, the glowing water casting a cool shade of blue onto his face.

Numbly, Veritas got to his feet and repeated the chain of actions that he had taken in the dream.

It had seemed so real at first, but looking back on it now, there was no way it could have been anything but false. Things were most assuredly—

—Too perfect.

(Too impossible. There was no way that Aventurine would ever return his feelings, no matter what that dream version of him insisted. A sweet dream was a cruel dream. There were indeed things that Veritas simply could never have. Unless—)

The book that he had taken along with him was not about Memoria at all. He did not know why he had not questioned it then. It was on fallen Aeons and the effects their Paths still left in the universe. He had his suspicions as to what kind of power could have dragged him into that false dream, but there was no use in pursuing it further when the most important matter in his life was teetering on the brink of disaster.

None of the words in the book stuck in his brain, and he gave up trying to read. He crossed the short distance over to the Dreampool and took one of Aventurine’s hands into his own, swallowing thickly.

“Wake up, you damn gambler… Come back to me… please…”

But for all his quiet pleading, Aventurine still did not wake up.

A gamble. This was what it was. The shade in the dream had said so, and Veritas himself had placed the bet. All he could do now was wait. Again– and hope to whatever Aeon or god was listening that Aventurine would find his way back to him.

Time seemed to pass like sweet-dream syrup and swimming whales as Veritas sat there, clinging onto Aventurine for all he was worth. More than once he had to take several deep breaths to calm himself down and so that he would not accidentally crush Aventurine’s hand.

It was in one of those breathing exercises that he finally felt a twitch against his palm, and his heart seized. He jolted up straight, watching with wide eyes as Aventurine slowly roused himself from his slumber.

Finally, finally– his eyes fluttered open, pink and blue– almost purple in the cool light of the room.

Relief crashed in a wave over Veritas’ head, yet, he found that he still could not seem to breathe.

“Oh, Ratio, you’re still here? I honestly thought you’d be gone by… now…” Aventurine rasped out, but Veritas barely registered the words at all.

This. This was more real to him than any ghost within a sweet dream could ever be.

(And the thought that Aventurine thought he would have left him there by himself stung, but Veritas brushed it away. He could bear it all as long as Aventurine was alive.)

There was more that Aventurine said – things about the prescription that Veritas had left for him, but there would be time later for Veritas to turn it over in his head. All he could think about was Aventurine, the weight of his hand in Veritas’ own, and the words of the almost-Aventurine in his dream.

Tell him. You have to tell him.

Veritas kissed him.

The world narrowed down to only the sound of his heartbeat in his ears and the feel of Aventurine’s lips under his own. They were cool, but soft, and when Veritas urged himself closer, deeper, drunk on the sensation of Aventurine and his own desperation, Aventurine opened for him like a flower in bloom.

Aventurine was alive.

When Veritas slid his hands up to cradle Aventurine’s head by the back of his neck, his wrist settled against Aventurine’s pulse point, and his heartbeat thrummed rabbit-quick under his skin.

Aventurine was alive.

This time, he was truly, truly alive, the proof of it singing in his veins and held in his hands.

–And Veritas would not let his fears shackle him any further.

Aventurine felt as light as a feather when Veritas picked him up to carry him over to the bed. Their clothes, still dripping with dream fluid, were quickly shed and cast aside as Veritas pressed Aventurine down into the mattress and their kisses turned more heated and insistent.

It was only when his knee found itself slotted in between Aventurine’s legs, and the man let out a moan against his lips that Veritas felt some clarity return to his head.

This… there was nothing in this universe that he wanted more than Aventurine – to hold him close, to tell him that he loved him, through his words and his actions or otherwise, to let him know that he was so scared when Aventurine went willingly to his ‘death’ —

But even now, he still was not sure that Aventurine felt the same.

When he pulled away, a silver string of saliva went with it, lengthening and then breaking, falling down between their chests. Veritas leaned their foreheads together, and closed his eyes.

“This… are you sure of this? You need only say the word, and I will stop, and we will say that nothing has happened tonight. But if you are sure, and this is what you want, then…”

He opened them again, meeting Aventurine’s own. There was some kind of emotion in them that he could not place, but–

It did not look like regret.

It did not look like fear.

“Choose your next words very carefully, my dear gambler. If we are to move forward from here, then there is no going back. For… either of us. Do you understand?”

Beneath him, Aventurine’s throat bobbed as he swallowed. But, he raised one of his hands, and cupped the side of Veritas’ face.

“…I understand,” he murmured.

It was all Veritas needed.

He closed the distance between them to kiss Aventurine again, again, and again.

The next few hours of that day blurred together in Veritas’ memory. Only a few moments stood out to him—like stones dropped in a pool and rippling outwards, only at the point of where they were dropped did he remember clearest.

…Well. Not completely. The sounds that Aventurine made as Veritas relentlessly drove into him, and the sound of his own name falling from those sweet lips as he begged for more—Veritas would remember that for as long as he lived.

Everything else, however, was lost in the sea of love and lust that he felt for Aventurine. ‘Feelings’ also seemed like an inadequate way to put it. If Aventurine was a sea, then Veritas found himself all too eager to drown in it, like a sailor led astray by a siren’s call.

He remembered their last round clearest.

The desperation of their movements had died down into a low flame, after proving that they were indeed alive, and not within a dream of any kind.

When Veritas moved inside of him, it wasn’t rough or hurried, but slow and purposeful. He took his time with it, partly too tired to go any faster, and partly because he wanted to relish every second of this moment together.

No matter what anyone said, no matter what Aventurine himself said, even, Veritas knew that the man in front of him was one of the most precious beings in the universe, and deserved to be loved and cherished as he was always meant to be.

When Veritas pulled Aventurine closer by the back of his head for a kiss, the movement nudged his cock further into Aventurine’s over-sensitive insides, and the man beneath him let out a muffled whine against Veritas’ lips.

Aventurine would seriously be the death of him, one day.

There was little else he could say. Little else he could do, even, except to let himself be swept away by the tide.

This was who his heart belonged to. This was who he’d almost lost. This was the one that he knew, somewhere deep down, instinctual and sure, that he’d spend the rest of his life with.

”Ah— R-Ratio—!”

They were both close, and Veritas could feel it. Tiny tears glimmered at the corners of Aventurine’s eyes like stars, and Veritas tilted his head up to gently kiss them away.

“Aventurine—“

“—Kakavasha,” Aventurine had gasped quietly into his ear, cutting him off. He was shaking with each push of Veritas’ hips into his, so cock drunk that Veritas wasn’t even sure if he was aware of what he was saying. “My—that’s my real name.”

“Then come for me, Kakavasha,” he breathed against his lover’s ear, and Aventurine— Kakavasha— shuddered against him, a cry more beautiful than any song of the Harmony spilling from his lips as he came dry, already too spent to produce anything more.

Veritas followed him over the edge moments later, spilling deep into him, and, too exhausted to do anything otherwise, let himself fall onto the bed. He pulled Kakavasha close, uncaring of the stickiness between them, or of his softening cock, still gently enclosed by the warmth of his lover.

This was the path of no return that they had stepped on.

From that moment on… they belonged to each other, and there would be nothing in the universe that could stand between them.

Even so, things weren’t as simple as Veritas had thought it might be. He had hoped, if not slightly foolishly, that it would be that. However, they had left sweet dreams behind on Penacony, and reality was not as forgiving.

For the first stretch of the journey, Aventurine avoided him.

He was already gone by the time Veritas woke up, with nothing but a short note left on the bedside table to let him know that he had not simply just left him out to dry—but it was distinctly cool and professional, and rather devoid of the emotions they had expressed to each other the night before.

Rather confusingly, it seemed that Aventurine had also taken the time to wipe off the remains of their coupling before leaving as well, judging from the fact that Veritas found himself cleaner than he would have expected from a long session of unbridled, passionate sex.

This… was not ideal, to Veritas, but he allowed it for the moment. He knew all too well how avoidant Aventurine was, and if he needed time to process everything that had happened in the span of the last 72 system hours, then Veritas would let him.

There was also the matter of him needing to recover from his brush with Nihility, and Veritas being called upon by Screwllum to discuss the final lines of code needed for their Divergent Universe project at the location where it would be based.

Then of course, there was the entire matter of that Masked Fool’s distasteful prank to deal with, which ate up even more of their time together.

It all resulted in their next meeting being on the IPC chartered ship that would take them back to the Pier Point spaceport.

Again, not ideal, but upon making eye contact with a vaguely unsettled looking Aventurine within the first few minutes of their warp, Veritas decided that he needed to be more firm with himself, and establish what they were to each other once and for all.

Cornering the man was surprisingly easy, all things considered.

The chance had come when Aventurine had stood up to go take a walk, claiming that he needed to stretch out his legs. It was with all the determination of a Pathstrider of the Hunt that Veritas followed him to the next wing over.

The layout of most newer IPC ships were quite standard. Veritas would know. He contributed in no small part to the design, after all.

This also meant that he knew the exact route he would need to take to cut Aventurine off. If he took Aventurine’s average walking speed into consideration, and his tendency to favour the left side path—

Veritas placed himself perfectly in position in the middle of the path, and Aventurine collided face first into his chest as he turned the corner.

A rush of breath escaped Aventurine’s lungs with the impact, and Veritas’ arms instantly rose up to steady him. He actually hardly even felt it, but perhaps the same could not be said for Aventurine, whose irritated expression and heated remark fizzled out the moment he looked up and saw who it was that he had bumped into.

“Aventurine,” Veritas said. “I think we should talk.”

Even then, Veritas felt a little awkward about it. Aventurine had given him his real name, but they had not had any discussion about whether it was said in the heat of the moment or if the man genuinely meant it. He hoped that with this upcoming conversation, they could address this part as well.

Veritas wholly expected Aventurine to brush him off with another one of his smiles and deflecting comments, but to his surprise, he did not. Aventurine only stared for a moment longer before he seemed to deflate, scrubbing a hand over his face in defeat. Perhaps he too, realised that avoiding this conversation was more trouble than it was worth.

“You’re not gonna let me go unless I say yes, huh, doc?” He said, and Veritas almost wanted to protest. He would if that was what Aventurine wanted— but he wouldn’t be happy about it. Hm. Perhaps that defeated the point.

After quickly checking Aventurine over to make sure he was fine after their collision, they made their way over to an isolated lounge. A long chaise sofa had been set next to a low table, and Veritas took a seat on it, gesturing for Aventurine to do the same. He did, albeit with what seemed like a little reluctance.

At the very least, Aventurine seemed to have regained some of his usual bravado.

“So? Dragging me all the way out here for a ‘chat’ you say, doctor,” Aventurine cooed, aiming a smirk Veritas’ way. He quirked an eyebrow in what he must have felt meant something else. “That’s quite the bold invitation, coming from you—“

“We need to talk about what happened,” Veritas interrupted, and Aventurine froze.

He was not in the mood to indulge in Aventurine’s flirtations. Not this time, at least. If it had been a month, two months, half a year ago, he would have taken it for what it was— a proposition to find some isolated spot to steal a moment together.

“…I don’t know what you want me to say,” Aventurine eventually muttered. His hands dug into his knees, and Veritas did not miss the way that one of them seemed to tremble slightly. “It was nothing. Just… a little something so that I knew I was alive for real. I got caught up in the moment.”

It was the biggest lie that Veritas had ever heard from him, and that included when he had to pretend he hated him in front of Sunday Oak.

“Pardon my language, but that is utter bullshit,” Veritas said, and Aventurine gaped at him.

“Do you mean to say that none of what happened meant anything to you? When I asked you if you understood what was about to happen? Do you really believe that I could simply walk away from all of it pretending like we can go back to how we were?” Veritas’ voice cracked slightly towards the end, and he could see how Aventurine shifted uncomfortably with each question.

He didn’t want it to end this way — not with how far he had come. He had given too much of his heart and too much of his hope for Aventurine to discard it all now.

Veritas took in a deep breath, held it for several beats, and exhaled.

If he was to do this now… then he had to brace himself.

He had to be ready for the answer, no matter what it was. Even if it meant…

“There are many things in this world that are unquantifiable and difficult to explain,” he began, if a little awkwardly. Dear Nous. He really hoped he wouldn’t make a fool of himself with this one.

Veritas cleared his throat. What was that strange tickle in his throat?

“However, the nature of a scholar is to always seek to quantify the quantifiable and explain the unexplainable. The unknowable is full of uncertainty, and yet, we persist, for what we stand to gain outweighs all the danger by far.”

He stopped momentarily. Aventurine was staring at him with widened eyes. He looked a little lost, even, and Veritas was suddenly struck with the urge to pull him close and comfort him, but he held himself back for just a moment. However, he did carefully reach over to him, and place his hand over Aventurine’s own where it rested on his knee.

Veritas exhaled again.

“With you… I find myself standing on the precipice of the unknown. Certain safety lies behind me, but if I should turn back now, then I fear that I may never live my life to the fullest. There will always be something missing.”

The words, once they began to take shape in his mind, tumbled out like a waterfall. All the jumbled emotions that he held for the man in front of him came out in the form of long, unravelling sentences. Veritas had always held a distaste for academics that composed their papers using the most esoteric metaphors available, yet, here he was, falling into that same trap.

“That’s… um… a lot of words, doc,” Aventurine finally croaked out. “You’ll have to forgive me, I’m not as sharp as you…”

Even Aventurine, who usually understood the meaning of his words, sounded confused. Veritas needed to take a step back and reorient himself.

“Ah… forgive me then,” he said with a shake of his head. What would be the best way to communicate his feelings…? “I… shall try and put this into terms that you may be able to understand.

“As a gambler and a businessman, you must be aware of the ambiguity aversion principle, yes?” At this, Aventurine gave a tiny, barely perceptible nod of his head, and Veritas hummed in approval. As expected of his dearest gambler. That would make things much clearer. “Excellent.”

“From where I currently stand— all logic states that I should choose the known path instead of the unknown, even at the risk of potential drawbacks. However, I find that when it comes to you— I simply cannot,” As the words left his lips, he heard Aventurine inhale sharply. “While I do not know what the future may hold, I am certain that if I did not have you there with me, then I will have lost everything I stand to gain with you in it.”

A beat passed, and then Aventurine began to laugh – a high pitched giggle that shook with anxiety. Veritas ignored it in favour of his pounding heart and the words that begged to release themselves from his mouth.

“Ratio, uh, this is starting to sound a lot like—“ He started nervously, but Veritas thundered on.

“What I mean to say, Aventurine—Kakavasha—is that I love you,” he finished with a ragged breath, and Aventurine’s words died in his throat with a choked noise.

With that single phrase, the dam within Veritas broke fully, and all the words and feelings hidden within his heart spilled out at once.

“You bring light to my very world. My heart aches whenever I am not with you, and whenever I am with you, I am loathe to depart from your presence. You are so bright, so strong, and so clever— so much so that I even envy you for it at times. I simply cannot even bear to think of my life without you in it. That is why…”

Veritas’ voice petered out, leaving Aventurine to stare at him incredulously. For a while, neither of them spoke. Veritas could see Aventurine’s mouth open and close a few times, as though he was trying to come up with a response, but he never managed to say anything, until—

“Oh. You’re… you’re serious,” Aventurine said.

Veritas’ blood ran cold with shock for just a moment before a rush of indignation overtook him.

“What made it seem as if I wasn’t?” He snapped out, and Aventurine flinched back slightly.

“I don’t know!” He yelped, a slight flush rising to his cheeks. His small frame, which had seemed so tiny sitting beside Veritas, suddenly flooded with a frantic, nervous energy. He whirled on Veritas, clapping his hands onto his shoulders with uncharacteristic force. “You—you’re always doing this! When you never mean what you say—“

“And yet, you are the only one who ever questions it further.” Veritas countered, cutting him off. “Surely, you understand what that means?

“…What I mean?”

“Ratio—“

“Don’t you think we are long past the need for any falsehoods between us anymore? I would hope that after all this time, we can present who our true selves are to each other.”

Aventurine slumped, and his fingers dug even more firmly into Veritas’ shoulders.

“You… but you don’t know anything about me. The real me,” he said helplessly. His eyes had begun to shine wetly, and his voice shook with each word.

“Then I will learn. Any, and every version of you– I am certain that there is none that I do not love, in any universe.“

Once again, Aventurine seemed to be struck speechless by Veritas’ sincerity. He floundered for a few minutes more before his whole body shook, and a silvery tear slid down his cheek.

“You… you’re so stupid…!” Aventurine wailed, and before he could even blink, he threw himself against Veritas, his hands fisting in the front of his robes as he began to sob into Veritas’ shoulder.

“I… apologise. I have often been told that I should not say anything when someone in front of me is in emotional distress, as I have a tendency to… exacerbate the situation,” Veritas said a little awkwardly.

Aventurine’s response to that was to cry even harder, his entire frame shaking under the weight of his sobs. Veritas was not ashamed to admit that it brought a slight pang to his heart, but at the same time, something told him that Aventurine needed this. Still, even if he could not offer words of comfort, there were other things he could do.

“But… I suppose, in lieu of that… Perhaps this will suffice.”

Twisting slightly, Veritas reached out and wrapped his arms securely around Aventurine, pulling him into a tight hug with Aventurine’s body flush against his own. Veritas began to rub his hands in what he hoped were soothing motions up and down Aventurine’s back, and, after a moment’s hesitation, pressed his lips to the top of Aventurine’s head in a gentle kiss.

In that moment, Veritas made a silent oath to himself that no matter what, he would always be there for Aventurine. He did not know for sure how long the man had been alone for in his life, but he could guess, and although he could not change that answer, he was determined to make it so that Aventurine would never know loneliness again. Not for as long as Veritas was alive and breathing.

When Aventurine’s sobs finally began to subside, the entire front of Veritas’ robes from chest to shoulder were soaked. He paid it no heed. It was a small price to pay to make sure that Aventurine was given the comfort that he deserved. From his pocket, he retrieved a clean handkerchief and began to gently wipe away the mess that had accumulated on Aventurine’s face.

“…Are you still upset?” He asked in a gentle murmur, and Aventurine shook his head.

“N-no, it’s okay,” he said, sniffling. “And I’m sorry for what I said. You’re– you’re not stupid. These are… they’re just happy tears. I’m just… really happy right now.”

A few more tears slipped out from the corner of his eyes, and he made to wipe them away, but Veritas caught his hand before he could do so, catching them with a clean part of his handkerchief instead.

“Good. That’s… that’s good. You deserve to be happy.”

At that, Aventurine blinked, and the lost expression from earlier seemed to find its way back onto his face. Veritas’ heart seized.

“Oh. I…” he mumbled, and Veritas’ free hand fell to his side.

“Surely… Surely you know that, yes?” Veritas asked faintly, and Aventurine bit his lip.

“I don’t… Nobody’s said that to me… Not… in a long time…” He trailed off brokenly, and Veritas fell silent as he searched for what to say.

“Those days… put them behind you,” he finally settled on decisively. He brushed back Aventurine’s bangs from his face and kissed him gently on the forehead, which was slightly warm from the state that he had worked himself into. “From now on, I will endeavour to make it known whenever possible. You deserve to be happy. You deserve to be loved.”

“Is it… is it really okay?” Aventurine asked him hesitantly. His hands fell into his lap in the space between their bodies, and Veritas reached for them, taking them into his own. He looked away, unable to meet Veritas’ gaze all of a sudden, but he did not pull away. “You—you could do much better than me. You— you’re— you. And I’m just— I’m nothing like you—“

Veritas stopped him with another kiss, this time at the corner of his mouth, and Aventurine fell silent. He was starting to find it a very effective way of shutting the man up and making him listen.

“I must stop you there. Please, don’t be ridiculous. Make no mistake, my dear Kakavasha.” He raised his hand to caress the side of Aventurine’s face, and in doing so, also hooked his fingers under his chin to gently turn his head back towards Veritas. “You are the one I love. As for why…

“Why wouldn’t I?”

Held in place by Veritas’ firm yet gentle grip, Aventurine could not escape even if he wanted to, and he seemed to shrink into himself slightly.

“I can think of a lot of reasons…” he mumbled, and Veritas shook his head.

“I assure you, there is no way any of them could measure up to the affection I hold for you.”

What he had said before barely even scratched the surface of what he felt. In the end, there was no way that he could really put into words how much he loved Aventurine, no matter how hard he tried. None of the things that Aventurine saw as flaws in himself mattered to Veritas—who felt that what made him strong was far more worthy of praise than Aventurine gave himself credit for.

“… You really mean it? This isn’t… a trick?” Aventurine finally asked in a small voice, and Veritas exhaled shakily.

“No. It is not,” he said. “Kakavasha, I love you. And you need not say it back right now, but I would hope that at the very least, you… you feel something similar.”

He stumbled slightly over his words as his heart crawled up to the back of his throat. For all that he’d said and thought about his feelings towards Aventurine, he truly didn’t know how he’d react if at the end of everything, Aventurine truly rejected—

–him.

But— he wouldn’t, would he? Someone who didn’t feel the same way that Veritas did about him would not have let himself cry in his arms, would not have made love together, would have not given him such hope—

Because while at times Aventurine could be cold, he was not cruel.

“… Ratio, I—“

“Veritas. I want you to use my given name as well,” he interrupted in a rush, and Aventurine swallowed thickly. He sniffled once, and ever so slowly, slumped back against Veritas, tucking his face into the hollow of his throat. His arms wrapped tightly around Veritas’ torso, fingers curling loosely in the back of his robes.

“…V-Veritas. I… thank you…” he whispered. A faint flutter against his skin led Veritas to believe that Aventurine had closed his eyes.

“I don’t know if I can say it back right now, but I just… I do want this. Whatever this is— with you.”

His arms tightened around Veritas, and for a moment, Veritas swore that he could feel Aventurine’s heart pounding away in his chest, just as his own did.

“I’ll wait for you for as long as you need,” Veritas murmured back. “There is no need to put what it is into words if you do not think you can. We… have never needed words between us to understand what we know of each other.”

For a while longer, they both sat there, holding onto each other. As the minutes ticked by, Veritas felt himself begin to calm down as well. Slowly, a sensation of great warmth came to fill him, radiating out from everywhere that Aventurine was pressed against him.

It was joy—he realised. Joy— and contentment, and love.

At long last… after years and years of heartache… he had finally come to have that which he desired most.

In his arms, Aventurine shifted slightly.

“I just… I never thought I’d get here,” he said, half muffled, and Veritas’ heart twinged slightly at his words. He freed one of his hands and began to slowly run it through Aventurine’s hair.

“You’ve done very well. Fate has not been kind to you, but you have persevered all the same.”

At that, Aventurine let out a bitter sounding chuckle.

“Yeah… I guess you could say that…” He muttered, and Veritas sighed.

“I don’t claim to understand the tragedies that you have gone through, nor do I wish to pity you for them,” he began. “However… I do know that you are all the more stronger for them. There are very few in this universe who could have experienced what you have, and still retain so much of who they are. I could not have done what you have done.”

Gently, Veritas eased the both of them back against the cushioned back of the sofa, carefully arranging their limbs into a more comfortable position. Aventurine was both a comforting weight against him and a solid warmth held in his arms. In such proximity, Veritas could not help but indulge in his heart’s desires, and he dropped yet another kiss to the top of Aventurine’s head.

“…Can you say it again?”

Eventually, Aventurine peered back up at him. His eyes were still slightly red and puffy, but they were at least no longer wet with tears.

Veritas blinked.

“Which part? All of it? If that is what you wish—“

“No, no! Just… just the part where you said you… you know.”

A pink flush began to crawl up Aventurine’s cheeks, and Veritas breathed out a sigh of realisation. With a tiny chuckle, he kissed Aventurine once again, a chaste one on the lips, and leaned their foreheads together.

“Ah. I will say it as many times as you like, then. I love you, Kakavasha. More than anything.”

There were no hard set rules for being an ardent lover, as Veritas came to soon find out.

He did not have much depth of knowledge to draw on. His own experience with romance was sorely lacking, and there had been little that could be counted as romance in the relationship that he had had with Aventurine prior to that point.

It was only fortunate for him that he was not as sexually inexperienced as many would expect him to be, Aventurine included. His late teenage years were long past him, but it would be remiss of him to discount the fact that they served him well in getting practical experiences concerning matters of the flesh.

They were… mostly underwhelming. Good enough for what it was, but nothing so extraordinary that Veritas felt that he needed to make time for it in his regular schedule. Other than when he needed to handle his body’s natural reactions to things, his life was largely sexless, and he was content with that—until Aventurine.

Physical attraction was perfectly natural, he had reasoned with himself at first. Aventurine was perfectly attractive as well, and he also met the standards of people that Veritas held a grudging respect for, or at the very least, tolerated. It wasn’t as though he was unaware that others found him attractive too. Their relationship happened to just proceed in that direction, and their feelings on the matter had no bearing on its development, no matter how skilled Aventurine happened to be in the bedroom.

…In hindsight, Veritas felt a little foolish that he had ever thought that way.

He had fallen in love with Aventurine because he was clever and brilliant, but— yes. That he was also easy on the eyes was not an insignificant part of it as well. It was just lucky that Aventurine basked in the attention Veritas gave to him, or else things might have gone in a completely different direction. They were maybe just a little too compatible in those regards — and with him being how he was, it was only inevitable that Veritas would only ever fall in love with him.

His only other experience with love was the observation of his parents' own marriage. They fit the bill of a bickering old married couple to the letter, heckling each other all on things of minor insignificance, but at the end of the day, they still found their way back to each other. Their relationship had stood the test of time from the last Amber Era to the newest one.

Years ago, when Veritas had still been intent on gaining the acknowledgement from the Aeon of Erudition, his father had visited him on Veritas Prime. He was passing through the system, having been called to some planet or another for his expertise, and decided to make the most of his trip out to this sector by visiting his son at the same time.

His father had clucked over him at the time despite the fact that he was a fully grown adult, worrying in the way that parents did, but accepted the invitation to go out for dinner together all the same. They really did not get to meet up as often as they wanted to.

Their conversations flowed freely with the help of a little wine, and eventually, it drifted to the matter of romance.

“When I was younger, I learned just in time that there is nothing more precious in this world than companionship. That was the wish of my mother for me, and it’s my wish for you. If I hadn’t taken those words to heart… we might not be here today. Do you understand, Veritas?”

He did not, at the time.

He held no ill will against his parents, and their opinions were always of great value to him, but he had never yearned for what they had with each other for himself. It simply didn’t seem… realistic that there was someone you could adore so deeply in the world that you could give all you had to them and more just to make them happy.

That, and whenever they were affectionate with each other, it was unbearably embarrassing to watch.

Either way, he had resigned himself to a life with only his books for company afterwards. He felt that those kept him happy enough anyway. Love was blind, and it was ultimately foolish for those whom it got the better of.

Until it came to Aventurine.

He was the single unknown variable that had disrupted the entire operation—the wildcard that threw all logic into disarray. He had infuriated Veritas to no end, yet endlessly intrigued him as well. There was no conversation between them that Veritas left without feeling like he had learned something entirely new, and without feeling like he had fallen just a little more in love.

And just like that, his father’s words had come to pass.

He found himself replying to Aventurine’s messages in long text chains that left him reluctant to end, and looking forward to each one of their meetings as the days passed by. He did not let it show if he could help it, all too aware of the fact that Aventurine preferred to keep his relationships professional, but there was no end to how he yearned to stay a little longer, bask a little longer in the presence of the man who made his life complete.

It really was not until after Aventurine came into his life and stayed there that he realised that he too, had really been very— lonely.

And when it came to what their next steps were, there really was only one logical decision to make.

After Aventurine had woken up in a cold sweat on their first night back on Pier Point, Veritas made the executive decision to move him to his own residence on Veritas Prime, indefinitely.

(He’d prefer it be permanently, but that was a step that he knew Aventurine wasn’t even considering at the moment. They would have to work their way up to the possibility. Eventually.)

It was only practical, and better for Veritas’ peace of mind as well. After nearly losing him to the Nihility, he was more than a little inclined to keep him close where he could monitor his health as well.

Aventurine did not protest it at all. Or, he at least seemed content with how things went. He did not bring up the notion of moving back, even after they made a few trips back to Pier Point to collect the rest of his things, so Veritas took that as a confirmation of his intent to stay.

Distantly, he considered that they perhaps were doing this in the complete wrong order. A regular couple would have worked their way up to moving in together. They would have found the time to be emotionally intimate together before moving into a physical relationship—

But he could not say that either of them fit the bill of regular lovers exactly.

Cohabitating immediately followed their heartfelt confession, not to mention their years long physical relationship before that. There were absurd leaps in logic there that even daytime soaps could barely hold a candle to, and yet, it was their reality.

It was Aventurine to blame for that, though Veritas could hardly find fault with him for it. It was just a part of who he was—naturally chaotic, an entropy system in a peacock’s feathers. It was infinitely more interesting that way, and besides—they had all the time in the world to learn how to love each other to the fullest now.

Aventurine deserved that much at least. In truth, he deserved much more than that, but Veritas thought that this might have been all too overwhelming as is. It was just as well. This way, Veritas could make sure that their wedding was the best it could be.

…Was it too early to start thinking about marriage?

…Probably not. Those things did take so long to plan in advance, after all.

Until then, there was nothing else he could do. It had been a long time since Veritas was a student, but this experience was now proving to him that he still had much to learn about love, and about his lover. In the words of his dearest person, he would simply just have to… wing it.

And he did indeed ‘wing it’.

He had no scope of what was normal, but he tried. Some things came exceptionally easily to him. Now that they were formally dating, Veritas needed no further excuse or permission to kiss Aventurine whenever he liked, nor did he need it to express his affection in other ways. They shared a bed, shared a closet, shared a bathroom — and sharing a bath was only a natural progression of that.

There was nothing sexual to it most of the time. But it was intimate, if only for the fact that Veritas was adamant that he take the time to carefully wash and attend to every part of his lover’s body. Aventurine had been through enough in his life, and Veritas did not think it a chore to make it known that he deserved to be spoiled.

He cooked enough for the both of them, three square every day save for when they went out to eat, and he brought water and held Aventurine through each of his night terrors. It was not especially glamorous, but it was worth it from the way that Aventurine’s eyes glimmered briefly for a moment with love and gratitude each time. It was simply the reality of a romantic relationship, especially with someone who had been through as much as Aventurine. There would always be the easy parts, but there would be the difficulties at the same time. What mattered was that they faced it together rather than by themselves.

Living together did come with its own fair share of adjustments, of course.

It had been a long time since Veritas had shared a living space with someone, no less a bratty little gambler who immediately started to take over the place like he owned it.

His awkwardness at being invited into Veritas’ home lasted for perhaps a day at most before he immediately started nagging at Veritas’ interior design choices and the apparent lack of adequate food in his fridge and pantry. The latter, Veritas could agree with at least. He had made sure to use up all his perishables before departing for Penacony, which left little else to be used. The former, however, was simply a mismatch in taste.

Was he going to do anything about it, however?

Perhaps not.

He didn’t even protest when Aventurine started ordering all manner of trinkets to be delivered to their house. For a solid week after he moved in, there was a steady stream of packages arriving at their doorstep. The luxury branded items that Aventurine liked to use, assortments of gourmet foods, matching items that Aventurine had bought because in his words — “It reminds me of us!” — and really, how else was Veritas supposed to respond to that?

The frugal, yet comfortable lifestyle that he had lived with before then all blew away in an instant. Aventurine spent money like he was feeding the birds at the park, and even though Veritas felt his metaphorical wallet weeping in sympathy, he told himself to get over it and accept this as part of his new life. Even while on leave, Aventurine made far more than he did in his own job, and even though he had his own pride, he could begrudgingly accept that it was nice to be treated to a rare volume or expensive research equipment every now and then. It was something he could see himself getting comfortable with.

As the days went by, more and more things changed in Veritas’ home.

The shoe rack by the front door filled up with more than just his sandals and dress shoes. His bedspreads changed into darker colours and more pillows were added in shades of gold and green. Another toothbrush found itself in the cup at his bathroom sink alongside a plethora of new makeup and skincare bottles, and twin mugs in complementary colours and slogans sat on the kitchen counter with their handles touching. Whenever they just happened to reach out for their drinks at the same time, their fingers brushed together, and Aventurine would giggle cutely.

It was all horribly domestic, and Veritas loved every second of it.

The impression of his house slowly began to change in Veritas’ thoughts. It was no longer just a ‘house’, but a ‘home’. It was no longer just his house, but Aventurine’s as well. Without him even noticing, it had become their home. It had become ‘Veritas and Kakavasha’s’ home. This too, was something his father had told him about when he was younger – the point at which a house became a home. There was an important distinction between the two, he had noted, but Veritas never truly quite understood what he meant until Aventurine came to live with him.

There truly was nothing else in the universe that Veritas would trade for this.

Aventurine at his side filled in an empty space that he hadn’t even been aware of until he was there, breathing, laughing, smiling, falling into an easy rhythm of life together.

If never gaining Nous’ recognition meant that he was able to love freely, then he would reject it without hesitation. Life, in all its simplest pleasures, was best lived with those that one cherished dearly. To be a genius held aloft by the universe in an ivory tower could not compare at all to the warmth of mundane life.

But perhaps it didn’t truly click in his mind until they were both cuddling together one day, with Veritas sitting upright while Aventurine’s head was in his lap, sprawled out on the couch. He had been telling Aventurine a story from his undergraduate days about accidentally getting locked outside his dormitory wearing nothing but a bathrobe and slippers. It was a memory that he did indeed find somewhat embarrassing, but if it was Aventurine, he found that he could get over his embarrassment to share some parts of his life that he wasn’t present for at the time with him.

Veritas did not claim himself to be an incredibly skilled storyteller, but there was evidently something amusing enough in his recount that with each new detail, Aventurine’s grin grew wider and wider until he was shaking with laughter.

“It’s not that funny,” Veritas protested half-heartedly. It had actually been a little painful. There had been marks on his stomach for days from getting stuck in the window trying to get back in. Unfortunately, saying this detail out loud only made Aventurine laugh harder, and feeling a slight prickle of indignation, Veritas moved his hands down to dig his fingers gently into Aventurine’s sides.

Aventurine’s giggles cut off into squeals as he was subjected to a surprise tickle attack. A tiny shower of golden chips bounced off Veritas’ head and shoulders before breaking apart into sparkles as Aventurine tried to fend off Veritas’ wandering hands in vain.

“Stop! Stop! I surrender!” He eventually panted out, and Veritas huffed in satisfaction, pulling him up for a kiss. Their lips slotted together easily, and Aventurine let out a happy sounding hum into his mouth. When they finally broke apart, Aventurine lifted a hand to run through Veritas’ hair.

“Sorry, sorry,” he said, still smiling. “I can’t help it though. My boyfriend is unfortunately very cute, even when he’s trying not to be.”

And quite suddenly, Veritas felt very light headed.

It was like his brain suddenly decided to go through an operational error. Nothing else registered in it except for Aventurine’s words – Boyfriend, boyfriend, boyfriend – echoing and bouncing off the walls of his skull like an outdated computer screensaver. Was this the first time that Aventurine had referred to him in such terms?

Oh, Aeons.

Did this mean they were… dating?

He needed to pinch himself. He couldn’t be sure that he still wasn’t on Penacony, still stuck in a sweet dream. There was no way he could have possibly imagined the last few weeks, could he?

“...llo? Hello? Doc, you still in there?”

Aventurine’s voice tore him from his thoughts, and he blinked. Aventurine pulled his hand away from waving it in front of his face, clapping it onto his shoulder.

“Got me a little worried there just now,” he joked. “Something just click in that big, sexy brain of yours?”

He probably meant all the other times where they had simply been making conversation and it had led him to some sort of epiphany that led to a breakthrough in his latest research project, but this one was a little more… personal than that.

A surge of affection suddenly rose up within Veritas’ chest, so strong that he felt his limbs go numb for a brief second.

He pulled Aventurine close, wrapping his arms around him in a tight hug, and dropped his head onto his shoulder.

“No, not at all,” he murmured fondly. “I just thought for a moment that… I really do love you quite a lot.”

It had taken him a long time to get to this point. It wasn’t quite how he imagined it, nor was it something he had even expected to receive in his lifetime, but it was now something he had. His beloved gambler, the apple of his eye and the light of his life, wrapped up in his arms, where Veritas could hold him and kiss him and tell him how much he loved him every day of the rest of their lives together.

Aventurine’s breath gave a tiny hitch, and then, with a deliberate slowness and care, one of his arms shifted to comb through Veritas’ hair soothingly.

“Is that all it is?” The hands stopped for just one moment, replaced with a warm press of lips to the crown of his head. “Ah, well. Guess there’s no harm in saying it back.

“I love you too, Veritas.”

After that point, Veritas found that several things about himself, and Aventurine were put into perspective in short order.

The first was that sharing a bed as lovers was entirely different to staying the night and sharing one after one of their trysts.

Before, Aventurine never stayed the night at first. He didn’t allow himself to. Then, at some point, he did. But even then, he always left in the morning. He stayed the night, but he never stayed the morning, and somehow, that was worse than if he left after they were done at all.

Veritas knows, now, why that was. It does not mean he wished it didn’t happen. But the important thing was that it did not happen anymore.

When they slept together now, it was not always with the prerequisite that they had sex beforehand. Aventurine had an active libido, verging on just shy of concerning, but Veritas was able to satisfy it well by virtue of discovering that his attraction extended to everything that made up the man. That being said, there was equally something just as affirming and intimate as the act of resting within each other’s presence, trusting them to still be there in the morning.

By the third time that Aventurine had smacked his hand into Veritas’ face in his sleep, Veritas had come to accept that Aventurine was a restless sleeper.

It wasn’t necessarily an issue, and it definitely wasn’t a major hurdle in their relationship, but Veritas soon realised that he had truly taken getting a night of uninterrupted sleep without waking up from a pair of bony elbows jabbing painfully into his side for granted.

There was also the matter of the nightmares, still, but that could not be cured overnight. The best he could do for his lover was to simply soothe him back to sleep and give him his comforts, waiting it out.

By the fourth time Aventurine had nearly slugged him in the jaw in his sleep, however, Veritas had come into it with a plan prepared.

It didn’t take long for Aventurine to fall asleep, aided by a previous round of intense sex and the bath that followed, but even that couldn’t put a pin in his wiggling.

When Veritas reached for him to pull him into an all encompassing embrace, it was though something just simply clicked into place. Aventurine fit into his arms as though he was always meant to be there, his slight frame the perfect size for Veritas to hold onto. Under his tight hold, there was nowhere else for Aventurine to go.

It was then that Veritas realised that maybe—he might be more than a little touch starved, and that maybe, he might be more of a cuddler than he thought himself to be.

There simply weren't any words to quite describe how it felt to hold Aventurine as they drifted off together. It was one of the few things in the universe that could render him speechless.

But whatever it was—that feeling paled in comparison to waking up in the morning with Aventurine still in his arms, his hair a messy tangle of bedhead and bundle of comforting weight that was still asleep and drooling slightly onto Veritas’ chest. Aventurine kept a slim figure, though not entirely by choice, and his total weight wasn’t even all that much, but it was still enough for Veritas to appreciate the added pressure of his lover dozing peacefully atop him.

This was a side of the confident and playful gambler that he most likely showed to nobody else, Veritas had realised abruptly. And most important of all, Aventurine trusted him to be comfortable enough to sleep so soundly like this. Something bloomed within him then, small and unfurling like a flower bud under the sun-warmth of his love.

The meticulous morning routine he had kept up for the better part of half his life soon found itself in tatters with the addition of a single Aventurine shaped variable. Mornings in bed were simply too comfortable when he had his lover in his arms like that. That he could pretend that he was also making an effort to chip away at the mountains of sleep debt he had accumulated over the years was also a bonus.

What they had could not be easily defined, but it was theirs. At the end of everything, after everything, Veritas was able to have this. Aventurine was able to have this. And now that they had it, Veritas did not wish to ever let it go.

The second thing that Veritas discovered was that he actually… came to enjoy using terms of endearment, greatly.

It hadn’t even exactly been a big event, all things considered. It was in part, based off his parents, who had their own pet names for each other. They had some for him as well, even though the use of them had lessened over the years. While Veritas was adamant about not letting it get to that point, he still felt as though it was worth trying, if only to gauge how they both felt about it. It felt like something that couples normally did in their relationships, so it had to mean something.

And he did.

The first time that he had added on a casual ‘darling’ to the end of his question, Aventurine had turned a very lovely shade of pink, and tried to hide his face in his hands. It was honestly adorable, and Veritas had abruptly realised the appeal of these terms. It was quite nice to be the one flustering his dear gambler for once, and not the other way around.

As the days passed, he cycled through several other tests. ‘Love’ was also added on as a staple (Aventurine had nearly tripped over when he used that for the first time), and ‘dear’ also found its way into his regular vocabulary. It was actually less embarrassing than he thought. Aventurine was all of the above and more to him, so he truly did not spare any further thought to it beyond that it was just another truth.

It was… slightly different being on the receiving end, however.

“Hey babe, can you pass me the butter?”

It took a moment for Veritas to register the words that had been spoken, and when he did, heat rose up in his cheeks immediately.

“What— what did you say?”

“I said to pass the butter, babe,” Aventurine repeated, tacking on that accursed nickname onto the end. He waved the aforementioned toast in Veritas’ face. “You want me to eat my toast plain?”

A little numbly, he slid the requested item across the counter over to Aventurine, who blew him a kiss in thanks.

It wasn’t until he heard the crunch of his beloved biting into the toast that he snapped back into attention. He left his eggs in the pan for the moment and strode over to Aventurine, who was happily seated at the counter with his breakfast in front of him.

“Don’t call me that,” he said. He had tried to slip a hint of authority into his voice, but he wasn’t sure how much of it came across. His tone had wavered immediately at the sight of Aventurine’s cheeks puffed up like a chipmunk as he nibbled at his toast. It was insultingly adorable, and Aventurine probably did not even realise he was doing it.

“Call you what, baby?” Aventurine replied innocently. There were a few crumbs at the corner of his mouth, and Veritas gave in to the urge to brush them away, leaning in to wipe them away with his thumb.

“Th-that—! I am not an infant–” Veritas protested, and Aventurine’s brows climbed up into his hairline.

“Well, obviously not,” he said matter of factly, setting down his toast. “I think I would know if that was the case.”

“You know what I mean!”

“I don’t think you do,” Aventurine replied easily. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but paused halfway. His nose twitched, and his eyes widened. “Oh shit, never mind that! Babe, you forgot about the eggs!”

The eggs, unfortunately, were not salvageable. Thankfully, his trusty cast iron pan that had been with him since he was a student was unharmed.

Aventurine did not stop calling him his ridiculous term of endearment.

It seemed like this too, was another necessary adjustment Veritas would need to make in his life.

The third thing that he discovered was that despite what he wanted to think of himself, he really was no better than any other man.

Because, if he was allowing himself to be frank, the sex was quite simply, mind blowing.

If he had thought the times they had slept together in their previous arrangements were good, it didn’t even hold a candle to how it was sleeping together as lovers.

In the past, their arrangements had been very simple. They fucked rough and fast, because that was how Aventurine wanted it. He had boastfully claimed that he could make any man come in a minute or less, and had summarily proved it with nothing but his hands and his mouth in a cramped little storage closet of all places. Veritas had been out of sorts for days afterward even just remembering it.

Credit was given where credit was due; Aventurine was good at his job, and good as an actor as well. Veritas did not quite realise until later on that Aventurine only expected it that way as he had no other frame of reference. It was not until later on, in the weeks leading up to Penacony that Veritas had resolved himself to trying a slightly more gentle approach. Penacony itself was the culmination of all those trials, and it paid great dividends.

These days, Aventurine didn’t care so much for treating sex as a race to get ahead in, or a night of mindless entertainment, or even the horribly misguided thought that it was all Veritas wanted from him, which was a marked improvement in Veritas’ opinion.

However, that did not mean it happened with any less frequency. If anything, their shared proximity meant it happened even more often.

It was not an issue for Veritas, however. He loved Aventurine, and he loved making him feel good physically as well. His own pleasure was much more secondary to that, though Aventurine never did fail to return the favour.

He couldn’t say if it was because of attraction, or if it was because Aventurine was just very receptive to him. It could even be both, really. It wasn’t as if Veritas had much other sexual experience to compare it to. All he knew was that Aventurine was very talented with his mouth and his hands in the meeting room and the gambling table, and that extended to the bedroom as well.

Did Veritas actually manage to beat his personal record of how fast he’d come with his cock in Aventurine’s mouth the first time that he’d taken it all down his throat with barely a tear in his eye to show for it?

Well, quite frankly, yes.

If he didn’t find it so incredibly arousing, it might actually have been a little embarrassing.

He couldn’t even make any excuses like he was stressed and pent up. He really did just find Aventurine that attractive. In the cases that he actually did find himself stressed and pent up – from some snarl or tangle in his current research project, his lover somehow knew straight away how to best clear his head.

In the words of his students, Veritas thought that he might finally have understood the true meaning of ‘post-nut clarity’.

It truly was unbelievable how clear headed he was after a round of vigorous sex. Enough so that breakthroughs came to him in the blink of an eye.

Aventurine hadn’t been too happy after he’d been abandoned while Veritas rushed off to note down his realisations for the first time, however. He had been wholly annoyed for a week, and rebuffed all attempts Veritas made at initiating sex the entire time. Veritas had learned his lesson after that. Now, he left all his note-taking for after he’d given Aventurine the appropriate amounts of cuddle time, or either did it while Aventurine was curled up on his lap, with one arm curled around his waist to stop him from toppling over.

It was all a delicate balancing act, but Veritas approached it with nothing but the same tenacity he gave to all his other problems.

That being said… he refused to call himself addicted to sex. Was it such a crime to be a generous and attentive lover who just so happened to find himself too beholden to his partner’s propositions? It certainly wasn’t an arrestable offence, let alone an offence at all, and Veritas knew that without even having studied law. He was entirely justified in all of his actions.

So.

All in all, Veritas was very content with how things were going in his life. In fact, he’d say that he was more than content. After all, he was the happiest he could ever recall being in his years of living, living a steady existence with the love of his life by his side.

If someone had told him this was what his life would be, not even half a year ago, he would have laughed in their face and asked them if they were a Masked Fool. Then, he would have gone home to his achingly lonely house and pretended he was fine as he buried himself into research in an attempt to ignore the idea of a life that consisted of him loving, and being loved by Aventurine in return when he knew that it wasn’t possible.

In any case, that had no bearing on his life now. Instead of going home to his lonely house, he was going home to their small little family of three adorably precocious snacks and one adoringly precious gambler. Instead of burying himself in his work, he was burying himself into the warmth of his lover, which did far more for his mental health than slaving over stubborn equations all night ever did. It was a mystery as to why he hadn’t done this sooner.

Yes. Things truly were on the up and up for Veritas Ratio, and he was quite eager to see how much better they could get.

The weeks flew by, and gradually, Veritas settled into his new life with Aventurine in it. When it came time for him to return to his teaching duties at the University of Veritas Prime, it was only natural for him to try and make a place for Aventurine there as well.

He got the vague impression that Aventurine thought that he did not fit there, but Veritas found it hard to believe. After all, he had taught scores of students there during his tenure, and only a scant few ever came close to the level of Aventurine. He may not have ever been formally educated, but he had shown himself time and time again to be able to pick up complicated concepts with ease, and the trains of thought that he followed revealed much more than anyone who had been given a standard education ever had. The idea that he did not belong was laughable, but out of respect for his lover, Veritas held back his thoughts.

Instead, he subtly made comments on his own schedule, leaving a copy of his timetable lying around at home in an attempt to signal to Aventurine that not only was he welcome to come visit, he was even glad for it. Whether Aventurine actually realised it however, was another question completely.

But.

Eventually, he did.

While Veritas would not lie and say that the first appearance of his lover at the campus he deemed his second home went the way he had hoped it did, he was eternally grateful and proud of Aventurine for taking the time to come see him either way.

From there on, his visits gradually increased, and Veritas could not deny that the sight of Aventurine mingling amongst his students, giving them his own encouragements and kindnesses was something that stirred up an entirely new warmth in his heart.

He grew to take comfort in the regularity of these visits too. Of course, they would probably be less common once Aventurine’s leave was over and he returned to his job, but Veritas was determined to make the most of every moment they could spend together until then.

Aeons.

He really liked Aventurine far too much for his own good, perhaps. Only a few months of courtship, as it were, and he already couldn’t bear to part with him. He dreaded the day that Aventurine needed to leave for a business trip while Veritas was left behind to fend for himself in a sea of disinterested students and obnoxious colleagues. It was quite likely that Veritas would simply cease to be able to function.

No. No– Of course not. Even he could recognise when he was being a touch overdramatic.

When that day came, Veritas would be fine. He was a fully grown adult, for Nous’ sake. He had survived plenty of years on his own, and he could handle a couple of days without Aventurine. He was doing fine right now as well, to further prove his point. The fact that Aventurine had arranged to meet him after he finished his last lecture for the day, on top of having seen him for lunch proved nothing.

Veritas took it all back.

He definitely was not fine.

The trouble was– Aventurine had not been waiting for him when he had finished his lecture, like he said he would be. Which, as Veritas had come to find out, was not like him at all. He hated being on time to his business meetings, but he was nothing but punctual when it came to meeting up with Veritas after class.

He had waited around a little longer, just in case the man was running late for whatever reason, but by the time the half system hour mark came around, a prickle of anxiety had begun to settle at the back of his mind.

Where was Aventurine? And why was he not picking up his phone? Did it run out of battery? But if that was the case, why did he simply not make use of the University’s free standardised charging ports that were dotted around campus?

A barrage of thoughts bounced around his mind as he closed the door to his office. Aventurine was not there either, which meant the number of locations he could be was narrowing sharply.

He’d thought Veritas Prime to be relatively safe. It wasn’t a metropolitan sprawl like Pier Point, nor was it a lawless wasteland like Talia, but there was always the chance that something could go– wrong–

Aventurine was perfectly capable of taking care of himself, Veritas knew. But he had also let himself get comfortable with his new life, and had not been on any missions since Penacony. Veritas had no way of knowing if his instincts were still as sharp as they used to be, even though he desperately hoped that they were right now.

For every one person that liked the Avgin, there were three that tolerated him, and five that absolutely despised him, much to Veritas’ despair.

Something must have gone wrong. It was the only explanation. Aventurine was lucky, yes, but there was no telling where the extent of that luck began and ended. Anything could have happened in the time in between–

“Hey, Professor Ratio. Is… everything okay? Are you looking for Mister Aventurine?”

Veritas whirled around with so much force that he nearly toppled over.

In his frantic rush, he had stalked out into the lawns of the main university campus, intent on making his way home in the slimmest case that Aventurine had returned there without telling him. What he did not expect was the awkward gaze of one of his past students, who blinked at him a little sheepishly.

Veritas distantly realised that perhaps… he looked a little unkempt, but he was also just a little desperate for any news– so much so that he’d take it from a student– though at least, thankfully, it sounded like they had some idea of where he was.

“You know where he is?”

He did not realise that perhaps he may have sounded slightly too demanding until the student reeled back with a small flinch.

“I—uh, that is—“ they stammered, and as Veritas took a step closer, they swallowed, and straightened up.

“He’s with the Celestial Jade Society right now, isn’t he? Didn’t he… didn’t he let you know?”

He most certainly did not. If he did, then they would not be in this situation.

Even though Aventurine was not quite in any immediate danger, Veritas did not feel like he could calm himself down just yet. At least, not until he saw with his own eyes that his lover was safe and sound.

With a little more prodding, he extracted the location of the club room from the student, and upon hearing it, he almost wanted to laugh in incredulity. As it turned out, he need not have looked far. The gathering was held in one of the basement seminar rooms of the mathematics building–where he had originally come from in the first place.

Veritas spared no time in making his way back to the mathematics building. Subsequent texts that he sent to Aventurine still went unanswered, so… he just had to hope that he was fine.

The moment he had eyes on the doors separating him from Aventurine, it was like all rational thought escaped his mind. Veritas surged forth, pushing them open with all his might–

–And came face to face with a room of shocked university students, and one equally surprised gambler.

For a moment, there was a stunned silence as all eyes swept between Veritas, and Aventurine, waiting to see who would break the stalemate first.

As it turned out, it was Aventurine, who shot to his feet, a wide grin stretching across his face that did not seem to match the situation.

“Babe!” He called out, jogging over to Veritas with his arms outstretched. “I’m so sorry! I totally didn’t look at the time! But, you know–ack!”

Once he was within arm’s reach, Veritas did not hesitate for even a single moment to pull him into a tight hug, drawing out a squeak from Aventurine. Only once he could feel the steady breathing of his lover brushing at the back of his neck did he finally begin to feel himself relax.

Was this… a little concerning, how he reacted?

…Probably. But he did feel it was justified.

“Um, Veritas, baby, I can’t breathe…” Aventurine said in a slightly strained voice, and Veritas snapped back into attention, dropping his arms with a cough. He was not particularly enthusiastic about doing so, but he would rather that than accidentally hurting him.

Quite suddenly, the entire ridiculousness of the situation hit him. Was he truly so paranoid that he needed to know what Aventurine was doing at every moment

“My apologies,” Veritas muttered, and Aventurine frowned slightly, bringing up a hand to cup his face.

“Hey now, what’s wrong?”

“I…” Veritas began, then shook his head. Getting angry over something like this felt unjustified, somehow. Yes, Aventurine had worried him unnecessarily, but at the same time, Veritas did not feel as though it would be helpful to scold him for that in front of everyone. It would certainly be rather hypocritical of him as well, considering how he had let himself spiral when Aventurine could most definitely handle anything that came at him.

Aventurine’s eyes flashed, and then he turned to a young man who had been watching everything with wide eyes. He smoothed his expression into an easy smile even as he slid his hand down to take Veritas’ own.

“Excuse us for a minute, will you all?” He said, and without further ado, led Veritas by the hand over to the corner of the room, and waited for him to speak.

“When I finished my lecture, and you were not there, I feared the worst,” Veritas finally said, and a look of guilt flickered briefly over Aventurine’s face. “When you did not respond to me, I grew even more worried. My love, you must understand, I promised that you could feel safe here. If I were to break that promise–”

“-No, no, no! Don’t say that,” Aventurine interrupted him. He squeezed Veritas hand. “I’m fine, see? I’m sorry, I should have told you where I was going. It was only supposed to be one game, but then I think I got a little too into it, and by the time you finished up, I… totally lost track of time. That’s not an excuse. I’m sorry–”

“-It’s alright,” Veritas sighed. “Just… please promise me you’ll be more careful next time. If you want, we can talk more about this at home.”

Aventurine fell silent for a moment. A moment later, he let out a sigh of his own, and stepped closer. Leaning up on tiptoe, he drew Veritas into a quick kiss.

“Okay,” he said quietly against Veritas’ lips, smiling hesitantly. “Later, then. I love you, baby.”

“And I, you, my love.”

Stepping back, Aventurine pulled his phone out of his pocket. He winced slightly, probably seeing the mass notifications of missed calls and texts from Veritas, but pocketed it a moment later with a sheepish grin.

“You know,” he began, tangling their fingers together. He started taking a few small steps backwards, pulling Veritas along by the hand. “We technically still have a bit of time before we need to go home. Do you know how to play? I can teach you.”

Ah. So this was where they were going with this?

Veritas arched a brow.

“Do you? I wasn’t aware this was one of the games in your repertoire.”

Aventurine smirked at him, dazzling and charming all at once, and Veritas felt his heart skip a beat in response. As ever, he could never resist when it came to his darling gambler.

“I just learned today, actually. Come on, babe, you’ll play a game with me, won’t you?”

“...Oh, very well. What are the rules?

Apart from that incident, things continued to go smoothly in Veritas’ life. Days passed, and Aventurine returned to work, taking a several day business trip that felt far too long despite it ending early.

Veritas called him each day, and spoke at length at how his day went, and Aventurine would do the same in return. Although their three catcakes seemed to be content with Veritas taking care of them for the time being, he could tell that they had begun to miss Aventurine as well, going by how they always seemed disappointed when he returned home in the evenings and it was not Aventurine that stepped through the door.

It was a relief to finally have his lover return home, but as for everything else that he brought back along with it, including his so called fun ideas…

“We have got to stop doing this,” Aventurine said to him all too cheerfully, as though he wasn’t currently straddling Veritas’ lap as he mouthed hungrily at the expanse of Aventurine’s neck. He did not sound guilty at all, nor did it sound like he planned on following through on his declaration any time soon.

“I hope you realise that this is your fault,” Veritas replied flatly, pausing from refreshing a mark that he had left on his dear gambler’s neck just the night before. It had faded just a hint in between the time he had left it and now, and Veritas prided himself on being nothing if not thorough with his work.

A week and a half. It had been a week and a half only since Aventurine had come home from his work trip and they had fucked, completely unplanned, in this office.

And since then, they had already done it four more times, soon to be a fifth.

Aventurine was a dangerous, cunning little devil, and somewhere along the line, Veritas had become wrapped entirely around his finger.

His academic and professional integrity was truly in hell, dragged right down there by Aventurine himself.

“Why, whatever do you mean by that, my dearest doctor?” Aventurine’s breath hitched up as Veritas sank his teeth over the dark brand on his neck, laying out his own claim atop the lettering.

“You know very well what I mean,” he grumbled into the crook of Aventurine’s neck, and Aventurine chortled against him, one hand coming up to fondly pat the side of his head and card through his hair.

“No, I think I don’t. I do know someone who can teach me though…”

“Impudent.”

Aventurine’s hands slowly shifted downward, plucking open the top half of his shirt buttons until his fingers dug into the swell of Veritas’ pectorals. His lover held a fascination with them that he did not fully understand himself. He also insisted on calling them his tits, and at times his boobs as well, which was altogether somewhat inaccurate terminology for them.

It was actually something he noticed very early on in their partnership. Even though Aventurine had been wearing his sunglasses then, the tilt of his head as his eyes drifted downward was unmistakable. He had been appropriately chastised on proper professionalism at the time, but that had quickly devolved into nothing once they began their other, less professional, arrangement.

If anything, dating had actively intensified Aventurine’s obsession with his pecs. Veritas had already lost count of the times that he would be doing something, and Aventurine would sneak up behind him to grab at his chest. That was not at all counting the endless times that they would be in bed together, and Aventurine would happily nuzzle his face against his bare breast and fall asleep there.

It wasn’t worth the effort to scold him every time. Eventually, Veritas gave up and accepted it.

Perhaps it was a stress response. Perhaps he needed the stimulation. Perhaps he needed the skin to skin contact.

In truth, it wasn’t all that disruptive to Veritas. It was a matter of pride, mostly, but it was a moot point anyway, unfortunately. He was so unbelievably far gone for Aventurine that he would excuse anything.

In retrospect, he had lost the fight the moment Aventurine had shoved a gun into his hand and looked him in the eyes while he pulled the trigger. He had to pretend he was entirely unaffected instead of popping a raging boner, as Aventurine would put it, every time he thought about it longer than a few seconds, which was a hard ask. He did eventually get over it, but that was not before the first of their trysts, where Veritas truly found out what a sight the beautiful gambler made when he was in the throes of passion.

He had been insanely attractive even back then too. Veritas denied it where he could, but he wasn’t blind, and he was just a man in the end. Well. That being said, not all men got off to the idea that their lover gambled with their life as easily as one would chips on the table, but at least they were working on that now, and he could get off on other things. Like the idea of Aventurine with his knees around his head, shaking like a leaf while Veritas held him down and drove into him, or the pink of his eyes being completely swallowed up by the blue as he stared up at Veritas with his spit slick lips stretched around Veritas’ cock—

Aventurine was insanely attractive, and Veritas was just a man.

And like any other man, all of his common sense and rationality went out the window when their very attractive, very horny, partner decided to proposition them in their office.

Veritas’ eyes slowly shifted to the papers on his desk. He did indeed have a class to teach later on in the day, and the hour was fast approaching that he would have to leave. He really had meant to get ahead on some of his work before then, and that included reading through a small number of articles submitted for his review. That, unfortunately, barely managed to get off the ground before his dear gambler had waltzed into his office spouting off something or other about his next mission, and how he had gotten what he wanted, and planted himself into Veritas’ lap. One thing led to another, and now…

But an idea sparked in his mind. Perhaps… Perhaps he could manage to kill two birds with one stone, as it were. And even if he didn’t manage to do so, it would at least make for a memorable experience.

“Hey, what are you thinking about now? You stop that, and pay attention to me.”

The sensation of cool fingertips on his face snapped Veritas back to attention. Aventurine was pouting at him, and on instinct, Veritas moved to kiss him, drawing Aventurine’s jutting lower lip into his own mouth.

He thought that he might never get tired of kissing this man, truly.

Veritas was hardly one to put any stock in the rumours of the Avgins’ talent of bewitching and beguiling, but distantly, some part of his mind wondered if it might be true, considering how Aventurine had somehow managed to enchant every single part of his being.

There was just something about Aventurine that made him an excellent kisser. Maybe it was experience, maybe it was natural talent, but whatever it was, it always left Veritas feeling a little weak in the knees. He was eternally glad for the fact that he was sitting down at the moment.

Their kiss deepened as a tongue licked along the seam of Veritas’ lips, and he opened willingly for Aventurine, letting him drink in the taste of his mouth. It wasn’t long before the tongue that had been swiping at his lips pushed its way past them and swept its way into his mouth, sliding against his own teeth and tongue in a mess of saliva.

Aventurine shifted himself closer. As their clothed erections rubbed against each other, sparks of pleasure crawled their way up Veritas’ spine.

With a quiet growl, Veritas got to his feet, hoisting Aventurine up by his thighs. Aventurine let out a little gasp of surprise that quickly turned into a moan as Veritas nipped at his mouth, gently setting him down on the edge of the desk.

When he finally broke the kiss, Aventurine’s lips were kiss-bitten red and swollen. As he looked up through his lashes at Veritas, he smirked, splaying his hands in his lap and swinging his legs slightly.

“My, my. How forward of you, professor,” he cooed sweetly, and Veritas almost rolled his eyes in exasperation. “All I wanted to ask was if there’s anything I can do for ah… a little extra credit. I’m very passionate about… biology, you see.”

Again with this ridiculous little act of his. Veritas did not know what was more embarrassing—the whole situation, or the fact that he was more interested in it than he wanted to be. For all that sometimes Aventurine could be very shy for indeterminable reasons, he was utterly shameless the rest, and this certainly counted.

He cleared his throat, and tried to ignore his embarrassment.

“Very well then,” he said gruffly. “Since you seem so eager to further your studies, and I need to resume my own work…”

Although he had only just set Aventurine down on the table moments prior, Veritas curled an arm around his waist and nudged him off until he was standing. From there, it was all too easy to flip him over and press a hand onto his back until he was solidly bent over the desk, leaning onto his arms for support.

Aventurine went without much resistance, but he did crane his head back to throw a smirk up at Veritas.

“Is the professor going to teach me something special? Another private lesson?” He cooed, and Veritas flushed slightly.

“Don’t be absurd,” he said perhaps a touch frostily. Aventurine only stuck his tongue out at him. “Before I was so rudely interrupted— There were a number of articles submitted to me for peer review. As there seems to be something else on my desk, occupying my workspace and… demanding my attention, I may as well make use of it as a teaching opportunity.”

He kept a hand on Avemturine’s back as he stepped forward to leaf through his papers. Ah. Perhaps this one would do.

Selecting a few sheets of a densely packed article, he placed the pages right in front of Aventurine. This was one that he had started reading earlier, but had to put off completing it and further drafting any notes for it.

…Until now.

“Read as much as you can aloud,” he instructed. “Let’s test your knowledge.”

“H-Huh? Wait, wait—! But— I don’t know how to—!” Aventurine stuttered, and Veritas cut him off by adding a touch of pressure against his back, and his lover instantly fell quiet. If only his actual students were so obedient.

“All the more reason to learn, hm? Do try your best. If you are successful, I do believe that warrants a reward. But do be careful… If you read something incorrectly, then you will need to start from the beginning again. Understood?”

“…Yes, professor…” Aventurine finally muttered, and Veritas nodded, lifting up his hand to stroke his hair.

“Excellent. Then, shall we begin?”

With practised ease, Veritas swiftly unbuckled Aventurine’s belt and unbuttoned his pants, pulling them down along with his underwear to expose the round swell of his ass and the smooth expanse of his thighs, both scattered with the remains of lovebites and bruises from previous nights.

He retrieved the bottle of lube from his desk drawer, absently noting that it was already almost empty. It was not an especially big bottle, but the fact that it was almost fully depleted was a little… concerning.

He was absolutely not addicted to sex in his office. That would be incredibly foolish of him. Yes—he was extremely attracted to Aventurine, and yes, he was only a man, but that did not mean he was some sex-crazed idiot who held all his braincells in his cock rather than his head. There was a reason that Aventurine chose him over his long list of suitors, and that was in no small part due to the fact that Veritas was not totally addled with a mindless lust for his beauty as many of them were. A healthy appreciation was completely different to that, no matter how much Aventurine reassured him that it was fine for him to drool over him like a dog over a piece of meat, if only because it was Veritas that was doing it. He was better than that.

Flipping the cap, Veritas slid his free hand down Aventurine’s flank to his ass. They’d fucked the night before, but he was adamant on making sure that his lover was well prepared to take him—

Veritas had witnessed many things since becoming romantically entangled with Aventurine. At least a third of those things had melted his heart with sheer adoration, while another third sent a thrill through his blood that he associated with someone matching his intellect that he actually enjoyed talking with. The last third, however, were all the things that did all of the aforementioned and sent blood rushing to his groin as well.

Between Aventurine’s pleading, and Veritas’ weakness to his pleading, he found himself picking up a great number of skills that he wouldn’t have dared to imagine himself with a year ago. That, of course, did not even begin to address the growing list of kinks he found himself adding to by the day. Aventurine was certainly as adventurous as his namesake, with an appetite for almost anything that could be conceived, and Veritas had fully expected that there could be nothing that could surprise him any longer.

But… nothing could have prepared him for the sight in front of him.

His surprise must have been evident, because Aventurine giggled beneath him, and he turned his head back to flutter his eyelashes at Veritas.

“Mmm, like what you see, professor?” He purred, canting his hips up. “It’s a custom order. Just— just for you. For your eyes only.”

That damned gambler.

Nestled between the pert globes of his ass was the base of a golden anal plug. It wasn’t one that Veritas recognised from their existing collection however, which made his discovery all the more shocking. The base had been sculpted into the head of an owl—his owl, the one that he favoured as a motif in his belongings. Tiny, polished red gemstones that matched the colour of his own eyes were inlaid into it as eyes, and the surface of it was warm as he ran a thumb over the detailing. Warm, no doubt, from Aventurine’s body heat.

For something of this quality… there was no doubt that it would have been expensive, and when it came to Aventurine, he certainly spared no expense on the things he liked.

“Keep reading,” Veritas growled, setting a hand on Aventurine’s ass to spread him apart. The owl’s head winked under the light, and Veritas felt his own cock throb with heated desire. He took a quick glance at the time. Perhaps— perhaps, if he made it quick, he could adjust his plans accordingly.

Truly, the effects of Aventurine’s chaos system on all his carefully laid plans were unpredictable as the man himself. And as always, Veritas was forced to change course to accommodate him.

He cemented the decision in his mind.

In a reversal from their time from a week and a half ago, Veritas sank to his knees in a single smooth motion. Very conveniently for him, he was at the perfect elevation to indulge himself, give or take a little adjustment.

Above him, Aventurine had slowed down his reading considerably, taking the time to carefully pronounce each word to the best of his ability. Veritas kept half an ear on it as he ran his fingers along the inside of Aventurine’s thighs.

There was already a litany of marks scattered across the skin there, but some of them were beginning to fade. Feeling a rare flash of indignation, Veritas set his teeth down on a patch of unmarred skin and bit down, hard.

The reaction from Aventurine was instant. He cut off the sentence he was reading aloud midway with a shrill yelp. Against the bite mark he had just laid down, Veritas clicked his tongue in disappointment. He tilted his head back to meet Aventurine’s baleful gaze, staring back at him from over his shoulder, and Veritas raised a brow at him.

“Are you that incapable of pronouncing a collection of simple words? Again.”

Well… simple was maybe a little bit of an exaggeration. Aventurine was reading a scientific article with extreme technical jargon, which would have been a bit much even for him, regardless of the fact that he still relied overly on his synesthesia beacon for more complicated matters.

However, Veritas was not about to tell him that. It was the principle of the matter, and he had found out that Aventurine preferred consistency no matter how incongruous with the actual it was whenever they slipped into role play.

“What? That’s not fair—rr!” Aventurine’s protest cut off into a loud moan as Veritas suckled a twin mark into the thigh opposite the one he had left just moments prior.

“The conditions of our arrangement were perfectly clear,” he said simply, dipping his tongue out to lap at the freshly laid hickey. He could not help but let the hint of a smirk slip onto his face. “Or are you incapable of following simple instructions alongside being unable to read something without controlling yourself?”

His lover gaped at him a few times as he struggled to come up with a response. A furious flush rose to his cheeks as he lowered his eyes and turned his face away in resigned acceptance.

“…No, professor…” he muttered petulantly, and Veritas hummed in satisfaction, placing a kiss on his inner thigh.

“Then begin again. Properly, this time.”

Aventurine gave an exaggerated sigh, but obeyed willingly, returning all the way to the beginning. At the same time, Veritas shifted his hands up to dig his fingertips into the meat of his lover’s ass, kneading and squeezing at the soft flesh.

Aventurine had a wonderful ass. This was a fact that did not escape Veritas. If Aventurine had an unexplainable fixation with his chest, then Veritas had to very begrudgingly admit he was the same with his lover’s generous… assets.

He had put on a small amount of weight ever since he had come to live with Veritas, but somehow, he still kept a very trim figure. Perhaps it was possible that all of it had been unevenly distributed.

It wasn’t excessively big by any means, but it was ample enough, and Veritas had soon come to find that each side fit perfectly into his hands. One for both. The flesh was firm and supple in his grip, yet had plenty of give. Best of all, any marks that Veritas left on them were both clearly visible, and lasted for quite some time. He had previously not considered himself an ass man, but this again, was one of the things about Aventurine that had Veritas reevaluating his entire life choices.

He had already had lunch for the day, but with the absolutely delectable sight in front of him… surely, there would be nobody that could find fault with him for wanting seconds.

Rather impressively, Aventurine’s voice only wavered slightly as Veritas wrapped his lips around one of his balls and gently drew it into his mouth. The weight of him was not all that heavy, but it was familiar, and it had Veritas tracing the tip of his tongue over the skin in slow circles, savouring in the taste of his lover. Perhaps Aventurine’s resistance was indeed improving. While that opened up some avenues for the future possibility, it was not actually what Veritas needed from him right now.

Aventurine had come into his office once again with nothing but devilish intentions, and so, Veritas had to at least attempt to teach him a lesson. Whether it would be learned was up to him, but what he wanted, he would get, and Veritas would not hear any complaints against it.

Aventurine reached the end of his sentence just in time for Veritas to move onto the other ball, drawing it into his mouth and laving over the skin with the flat side of his tongue as he sucked gently at it. His lover let out an utterly lascivious moan at that, and the sound of it went straight to Veritas’ own cock. It was technically an interruption to his reading, but not one that broke the word, so he let it be for the moment.

He repeated the cycle a few times, alternating between lavishing attention on each, but altogether didn’t spend much longer on them, as much as he would have liked to. He was on somewhat of a schedule, after all, and he reasoned to himself that it was only an appetiser for what he had planned next anyway.

Veritas pulled his head back to take in a few breaths of air. With what he was thinking of doing next… he would need the oxygen. As he did so, he took the chance to pull his own cock loose, letting out a heavy exhale of relief as it escaped the tight restraint of his slacks. He fumbled for the previously abandoned bottle of lube, pouring some out on his fingers, and gave himself a couple of light strokes to take the edge off before fixing his attention back onto Aventurine.

A faint flush had spread all over his body in splotchy patches, and somehow, it made the marks on his thighs stand out even more. None were quite as red as the jewels in the plug, which was still firmly nestled in the pucker of his hole.

Aeons. That damned plug.

He’d get to it soon enough. He could be patient. In the meantime, however…

Veritas opened his mouth, extended his tongue, and licked a long stripe up Aventurine’s perineum from the underside of his cock and his balls all the way up to his rim.

Aventurine cut off mid word with a startled noise halfway between a yelp and a moan, turning the rest of his sentence into a slurred mess of words. As Veritas closed in to press hot, open mouthed kisses around his rim where the plug still sat snugly, Aventurine continued on reading — even though Veritas knew that he needed to begin again. Feeling slightly indignant about it, he reached around to pinch the soft skin in between his groin and his thigh.

Aventurine took the warning for what it was, returning to what was surely now a familiar set of sentences with a grumble—this time, notably mistake free. Rote learning was truly a reliable educational method. It was no wonder it was a staple of teachers across time and space.

With each kiss to Aventurine’s rim, Veritas also alternated careful sucks and licks, thoroughly coating it with his saliva. Aventurine’s voice turned higher and breathier with each pass of Veritas’ tongue, and his hips bucked back more insistently against his face as well.

It was just a shame that from this angle, Veritas couldn’t see Aventurine’s face. He could certainly imagine it though. Most likely, he would have broken out into a thin sheet of sweat, with pink dusted across the tops of his cheeks. His gorgeous eyes would be shining with a layer of shed tears, hazed over with pleasure and lust. That clever little mouth of his that tricked and teased and wormed its way into the hearts of everyone at the negotiation table would be open and drooling as he tried to read through the rest of his assigned reading.

Veritas traced around Aventurine’s rim with the tip of a finger even as his tongue laved over it as well. The plug had not budged at all, and Veritas did not quite know if that was a good or a bad sign. Humming in thought, he pulled at the muscle just enough to give himself some space to work with, and slipped the tip of his finger in alongside the plug.

He tested the give with a curl of his finger, deliberately avoiding pressing against the spot inside his lover that was the most sensitive, and found it… a little more loose than he was expecting. Perhaps it was a good sign after all. Though… how much had Aventurine prepared himself in advance, exactly?

Well… it didn’t make a difference. He would be thoroughly stretched out soon anyway.

Veritas pulled back his finger, and without a second thought, slid his tongue in to take its place.

Perhaps a little belatedly, he realised that he should have thought about the logistics of it all a little more before letting his instincts act for him. Although it was certainly pleasant to look at, the edge of the plug’s base now dug awkwardly into his cheek, scraping at it uncomfortably the more that Aventurine twitched from Veritas’ continued attention.

…This wasn’t going to work.

It was slightly mournfully that Veritas withdrew slightly, curled his fingers around the base of the plug, and slipped it free. It came loose with a lewd pop, trailing a long string of fluid with it. Mouth slightly agape, Veritas watched as Aventurine’s hole fluttered slightly at the sudden removal of the toy before a sudden surge of heat rose within him, sending fire rushing through his veins.

Veritas wasted no further time, haphazardly dropping the plug into his desk drawer for later. He all but buried his face back in between the plush warmth of Aventurine’s cheeks to plunge his tongue back into the tight furl of his hole. Now free of the plug, Veritas commanded the space that it had once occupied completely.

Aventurine keened loudly at the intrusion, and his legs wobbled precariously as he seemed to shift to lean more of his weight on the desk. Good, Veritas thought hazily. He wanted Aventurine to feel every part of it–every single little thing that Veritas did that brought him to ruin and made him come undone.

Veritas attended to him avidly, dipping his tongue in and out of Aventurine’s hole in a fervent rhythm that had the man slurring his words. It was rather cute, really, how dedicated he was to the directive that Veritas had given him at the start. Aventurine was nothing if not tenacious, and it certainly showed, even when it sounded like he was seconds away from giving up entirely and devolving into a mess of moaning and begging.

Unfortunately for him, however, was that Veritas was also quite stubborn when he wanted to be, and he was not content to let this game end so quickly yet.

Veritas could feel the mess of drool and lube dripping down his chin, yet, he did not stop in his efforts. His hands slid up Aventurine’s bare thighs to his ass, firmly taking the soft flesh in each hand and pulling him closer and deeper back onto Veritas’ hungry and waiting tongue.

“—Th-The—Fuuck—!”

It was only by the way that Aventurine tensed and shuddered beneath him that Veritas knew that his lover had reached his first climax of the day. The only thing he’d done was use his tongue. Was Aventurine extra sensitive today for some reason? He usually lasted a little longer than that…

Aventurine was panting heavily when Veritas straightened up to check on him. He had one of his arms braced on the desk while the other had found its way to his side so that his hand could curl loosely around his cock. Drops of white oozed from between his fingers where he’d hurriedly caught his own release before it could land everywhere.

Veritas clicked his tongue. Ah. His gambler was certainly crafty. He had not actually forbade him from touching himself, and it seemed as though he couldn’t help himself either.

Well. It did not matter.

As Aventurine turned over onto his back and fumbled for a tissue, Veritas fixed him with an appraising look. His lover met his gaze, and swallowed. His face was indeed flush, and the tips of his bangs had clumped together with sweat.

“That… that was enough, right professor?” Aventurine asked him, licking his lips in anticipation. They both knew that it was most definitely not, and this was yet another of the gambler’s fronts. As if Aventurine could ever be satisfied with a single orgasm, and as if Veritas would be content with leaving him as just having come once.

Time.

Veritas took a quick glance at the clock in the corner of the office. They still had enough time, thankfully.

He switched his gaze back to Aventurine, who had shifted into looking at him coyly. The lower buttons of his shirt had somehow come undone in the commotion, and the fabric had shifted to reveal the smooth skin of his stomach and the faded handprints at his waist.

“Hm. Two points. Your delivery still requires improvement. If you are required to present your thesis in the future, how will you ever expect to gain respect with that tone of voice?”

It was a rhetorical question. Aventurine was more than capable of commanding respect from people, least of all Veritas, who would drop anything for him if Aventurine even did so much as raise his voice in warning. But right now, they were playing their parts, and he had learned his lesson from last time.

In response, Aventurine widened his eyes, feigning a dramatic sigh.

“Aah, but professor— I just can’t help it. I just get so easily… distracted.”

He met Veritas eyes, and very deliberately, trailed his gaze down to where Veritas’ own erection was still freely jutting into the air and still dripping onto the floor. Under his heated gaze, Veritas felt his cock jerk with the attention, and Aventurine laughed at the sight, parting his legs slightly. Aventurine’s own cock had begun to perk up again, just from the small amount of attention he had been given since his last orgasm. Truly insatiable.

Veritas cleared his throat.

“I see,” he rasped. “Perhaps you require more… encouragement. Very well.”

Veritas stepped forward between Aventurine’s legs, and bent down to capture his lips in a hungry kiss. He did not spare any mercy this time, taking advantage of Aventurine’s surprised gasp to press his tongue into his mouth and flick it insistently against Aventurine’s own tongue. How would he feel, knowing that just moments before, that same tongue had been working inside of him with reckless abandon? Could he taste himself in Veritas’ mouth?

Aventurine’s breathy moan answered for itself.

As they continued kissing, Veritas let his hand slip down Aventurine’s side, caressing the curve of his stomach and hip before it dipped lower and lower, and his fingers closed tightly around the jut of his lover’s half-hard cock. It was slightly damp from Aventurine’s own precome, and as Veritas ran his thumb over the head, Aventurine keened into his mouth.

It was all Veritas needed to close his eyes and feel for his Imaginary energy. In an instant, shifting golden chains of Imprisonment coalesced over Aventurine’s cock, and Aventurine let out a muffled groan of surprise into his mouth. When Veritas broke the kiss, Aventurine was panting hard, lips glistening and swollen.

He glanced down at the makeshift cock ring, and attempted to pull gingerly at it with a finger. It did not budge at all, and he let out a shaky breath before looking back up at Veritas.

Veritas suddenly felt heat rise to his ears. Had he overdone it? They trusted each other completely of course, and he did not have too many doubts that Aventurine was opposed to it, but they also had not discussed this beforehand. He needed to make sure this was alright.

He slid his hand over Aventurine’s own where it was braced on the desk, linking their fingers together.

“…Is this fine?” He asked worriedly, lowering his voice into a whisper. “Too tight? Too loose?”

Aventurine only blinked at him a few times before he laughed, leaning up to press a chaste kiss to the corner of Veritas’ mouth. He smiled, and Veritas’ heart swooped in relief. It was one of his genuine smiles, and not the one of the ones that he pulled on whenever he was worried about something but didn't want Veritas to worry himself. Most of all, it meant he hadn’t overstepped, and Aventurine was happy with how things were going.

“It’s fine, it’s fine,” Aventurine said, waving his free hand. He hooked his ankle around Veritas’ leg, pulling him forward. “Come on—”

“Mm. Very well then. If at any time you need me to stop—“

“Ducky, I know,” his lover said with a roll of his eyes. “Come on, babe, I’m not made of glass. I’ll be fine.”

“Just be careful. You may also knock on the table if you need me to stop.”

“Okay, okay, gotcha. Now…” Aventurine lowered his eyes down to Veritas’ neglected erection, which had not flagged at all in the time in between, and licked his lips. “Are you gonna fuck me already, or am I gonna have to leave and finish the job myself?”

Absolutely not.

“I’d like to see you try,” Veritas rumbled, taking a step forward, and Aventurine lifted his head, his eyes sparkling with mischief.

“Is that a challenge, my dear professor?” He cooed, and the last string of restraint within Veritas’ logical brain snapped.

“No. It is a promise,” Veritas growled, and without any further ado, he flipped Aventurine over to bend him over the desk, lined himself up, and shoved himself straight in.

In an instant, Aventurine threw his head back with a moan so loud that it echoed around his office and had Veritas almost thinking that the ground was shaking beneath him. The velvet heat of his inner walls clamped tightly around him, sending pure sparks of bliss all the way up Veritas’ spine, and it took all Veritas had to not lose his composure at that very second.

This. This was what men went to war for in the past, and what led planets to rise and fall. The slick press of lips sliding together in teeth and tongue, the hot embrace of a lover and their breath against a neck, and the sweetest sounds that could chime across the stars themselves.

Aventurine was so perfect—and Veritas would never stop wondering how lucky he was to be able to be by his side.

He did not give Aventurine a chance to catch his breath. No sooner than he had plunged into him did he grip Aventurine tightly by his waist, his hands finding the familiar grooves of his body where his hands usually found rest. Setting a ruthless pace, he fucked into Aventurine in a frenzy, using the hold he had on him to pull him back to meet his hips with every thrust.

Beneath him, Aventurine’s voice slid into a slurred mess of whines and moans. Veritas could hardly make out anything he was saying— some of it sounded like his name, while some of it sounded like the regular moans that Aventurine let out on a near daily basis. He was excessively vocal during sex, and it had taken Veritas some time to understand that it was not something he could control as opposed to him being excessively loud on purpose.

It did not take long for him to angle his thrusts in the right direction, and judging from the half-sob, half-shriek that escaped from Aventurine, Veritas knew that he had hit the most sensitive spot inside of him dead on. With renewed determination, he drove up the pace, adding a grinding motion to his thrusts that had Aventurine writhing uselessly under his hands.

Steadily, his lover’s moans turned into gasping cries as he began to sob from the onslaught of sensation.

Aventurine was an easy crier.

This was a fact that he vehemently denied. He said that it didn’t suit his reputation at all. He knew how to cry on command though, saying some nonsense about how some clients were more easily swayed by a show of tears, but for all his grandstanding, he had never tried it on Veritas. It was a smart decision, really. Either he had clocked that Veritas was not at all affected by those kinds of things, or did not feel the payoff was worth it. Possibly both.

For the longest time though, Veritas believed him.

Even at their worst moments together, the scathing remarks that Veritas favoured which could bring even a grown man to tears were shrugged off by Aventurine like water off a duck’s back. He met each one with a smile, a shrug, and a laugh. Rare was the man who could do one. Even rarer was the man who could do two. Only Aventurine could ever do all three, and Veritas didn’t care to admit how much that endeared this chaotic, foolhardy gambler to him even more.

But in the bedroom, once they got past the hurdle in their relationship that was Penacony, it was completely different. Aventurine would start crying at the gentlest of touches. It wasn’t until then that Veritas realised that Aventurine only cried at his most vulnerable, and nothing spoke vulnerable like his soul laid bare in the wake of Veritas’ own heartfelt confession.

Aventurine’s old master did not like to see his property, as it were, cry. Not because he was a compassionate person, but rather, the complete opposite. This was something he confessed to Veritas in the hazy hours of the morning after a few rounds in the sheets. For a man that loved to watch the lives he had bought duke it out amongst each other for bloodsport, he absolutely hated the mess that came of it, and was even crueller to those, as Aventurine put it, who ‘had the audacity to drip snot and slobber’ all over his expensive things. So… he simply learned to hold his tears back when he was called for… service.

Wretched, despicable man. Not for the first time, Veritas filed away the thought of inventing a time machine so that he could go back and kill him with his own bare hands. It was not something he was above doing. Just as a doctor knew how to save lives, they also knew how to take it away, and for Aventurine, there was nothing he would not do, the Hippocratic Oath be damned.

Then, Aventurine had been picked up by the IPC, and in the nature of a wobbly foal learning to find his footing, he had learned completely otherwise. A few well placed tears paired well with the pitiable creature image they tried pushing for him in his early career, and for a while, it truly did. Then, after finding his footing, he bloomed in full force, trading tears for sly smiles and honeyed words.

All part of the act, he’d said, tossing in a flirty wink for good measure.

It wasn’t the point, exactly. It was mostly that Veritas rightfully thought he hadn’t had a chance to properly cry since he was probably a child. Feelings like that weren’t meant to be bottled up. Even Veritas had cried in his adult life. Bitter tears, albeit, but at least he had gotten it over and done with and come out on the other side remarkably much more clear headed about his life goals.

But yes. Despite everything, Aventurine was indeed an easy crier. At least in bed.

It truly did seem that after Penacony, and after they had established where things stood between the two of them, Aventurine felt much more comfortable with letting his natural instincts take the reins.

Still, it was a while until Veritas managed to pinpoint the specific circumstances that would bring Aventurine to tears, and intentionally replicate them.

Some of the criteria was simple. Tender sex that had Veritas wanting to do nothing but affirm the boundless extent of his love almost always resulted in tears. They’d often ended up having to change the pillowcases along with the bedsheets with how much of a mess Aventurine left on them after a round of lovemaking.

Some of it was… more extreme. And Veritas, quite unfortunately, enjoyed this criteria more than he liked to admit.

Soft, tender sex between them was heavenly, of course. Any chance Veritas got to press the depth of his love, care, and affection for his dear gambler into him and watch him come undone beneath him would always be. But Aventurine was just as often rather insatiable as a lover, and more often than not craved something with a little more heated energy to it. If his mind was buzzing with too much of a gambling high to calm down, or if he was beholden to his large sexual appetite, as he often seemed to be, it fell to Veritas to bring him back to reality — as the nature of their arrangement first began.

There was only ever one real solution to that. Veritas simply had to pin him down and fuck him until his eyes were swollen from tears and his voice hoarse and raw from his screams. He truly would never settle down unless he was overwhelmed by the feeling of being consumed, mind, body, and soul.

Veritas wasn’t sure where this particular situation lay on the spectrum, but with the way Aventurine kept insistently, maddeningly, rocking back against him to meet his thrusts, whining and begging for him to go faster, go deeper, all while his words were marked with heaving sobs, he could hazard a guess that this would skew more towards the rougher side than anything gentle. And he was fine with that.

Dampness hit his thighs every time he rocked up against Aventurine’s ass, and with each wanton moan, whimper, and cry Aventurine let out, the more Veritas’ sanity frayed. Could he truly say he was just a man when right then, he felt more like a mindless beast in rut than anything?

No. He had to pull himself together.

“Aah-ah—! I’m—I’m clooo-ose—“

Abruptly, he stopped all motion, and beneath him, Aventurine let out a broken sob as he frantically glanced over his shoulder. Tears clung to his eyelashes, and his entire face was red with exertion as he looked helplessly at Veritas. He made a few rocking motions with his hips, trying to shove himself back further onto Veritas’ cock, but Veritas pressed a hand flat against the small of his back in warning, and Aventurine stilled.

“Why— why!? Please—pleaseee—I want—want to—” His words cut off at the end with a hiccuping sob, and Veritas raised an eyebrow at him.

Their little game wasn’t over yet.

He leaned in to whisper in Aventurine’s ear, and when his breath ghosted over the shell of his ear, his lover shivered.

“You want to come? Is that it? I’m afraid I can’t let you do that just yet, dearest.” Veritas slipped a hand downward, and curled it loosely around the burning length of Aventurine’s cock. The Imaginary binding he had set up earlier was still thrumming with power, and with only the tiniest amount of anxiety, he forced the chains to tighten the slightest bit more.

Aventurine instantly jerked beneath him with a cry, and his insides clamped even more forcefully around Veritas, drawing out a hiss from his lips.

“You… You should have been making use of this time to continue reading,” Veritas panted raggedly. Dear Nous. He truly was one to talk about restraint. It was taking all his strength to not lose himself and start fucking into Aventurine again. “So… we will test to see how your progress fares.

“Recite to me what you have learned, and I will make sure that you come until not even a single drop is left within you. But if you show that you have squandered this opportunity…”

He allowed himself a moment of indulgence, drawing back slightly to drive a deep thrust of his cock into Aventurine’s hole, and Aventurine groaned, his fingers curling into tight fists against the tabletop.

“There will be no relief for you. Understood?”

For a long moment, Aventurine did not respond. All he did was lay there against the desk, breathing shallowly as he tried, and failed to hold back his tears. A cold sheet of worry fell over Veritas like a layer of fresh snow. Was this too much? Was Aventurine going to have to use their safeword?

At long last, Aventurine finally lifted himself up slightly to twist himself back to gaze at Veritas. Even though his face had been carefully arranged into a look of half desperation and half outrage, his eyes shone with nothing but determination, and a challenge, and the warmth of relief melted away all of Veritas’ accumulated anxieties.

“But—professor, that’s not fair!” Aventurine complained, thumping his fist on the table slightly. “You never told me—gghk—!”

Veritas cut him off with a forceful slam of his hips, which was reminder enough of what was at stake.

“You were the one who came to me for supplemental learning,” he said sharply. “You are in no position to complain. You must know I am extremely busy. This is a privilege that very few get.”

“Oh yeah, because fucking students in your office is so important,” Aventurine snarked back with a roll of his eyes. “Is that what you tell your boyfriend as well? That you’re just so busy, when in reality, you’re moonlighting as a fuckboy—ah!”

“Enough.”

With a growl of frustration, Veritas moved his hand into Aventurine’s hair, and gave a hard yank back, eliciting a shrill yelp from his gambler. The tips of his ears burned with embarrassment. Honestly, what did Aventurine find so amusing about pretending that he would ever cheat on him? In his eyes, there could never be anyone else that matched him. It was laughable to think that he would ever be capable of loving anyone as much as he did Aventurine.

“Either show me what you’ve learned, or get out.”

“Ugh, fiiine.” Even though he was the utter picture of debauchery and ruination, Aventurine could still be such a brat.

No matter what the outcome was, Veritas was looking forward to making sure he would be absolutely destroyed by the end of it.

With a drawn out sigh, Aventurine closed his eyes, and started speaking.

“T-Toxicity tests were performed considering the embryo until 48 hpf, eleuthero-embryo—hngg—until 96 hpf, and larvae–”

As Aventurine’s clear and captivating voice washed over him, Veritas’ cock twitched from where it was still buried deep into Aventurine’s hole, and judging from the tiny smirk that crawled onto his lover’s face, it hadn’t gone unnoticed.

It wasn’t embarrassing to be aroused by it, he reminded himself. Actually, it was quite impressive that Aventurine remembered so much while there were other matters distracting him the whole time, and it only further asserted to Veritas that his lover did not give himself the credit he deserved. He was exceptionally clever, and this only proved it.

However, he was also only human, and as with any human, he still made mistakes.

“Apical endpoints–non-permanent and— permanent or teratogenic effects–were analyzed quantatively—oh, fuck. N-no, professor— I mean— “

Aventurine seemed to realise his error a split second before Veritas did, and even as he desperately tried to cover for himself, Veritas was already reaching for his waist—this time with both hands. Fully encircling the circumference of his waist, Veritas took a firm hold, and pulled back until only the tip of his cock was left inside of his lover.

He tsked slightly, even as his blood began to boil in his veins in anticipation.

“I’m afraid that’s incorrect. Zero points. How disappointing, considering I know you can do better than that. Alas…”

With only a small flex of his arms, Veritas pulled Aventurine back at the same time he snapped his hips forward, drilling straight into his lover’s prostate, and Aventurine let out an ear-piercing screech from beneath him.

“Your punishment awaits, my darling.”

The floodgates that had been holding back the snapping jaws of Veritas’ animal brain burst open, and he let himself go fully, slamming his hips into his lover in a brutal pace. With every thrust, Aventurine sobbed loudly, and his nails scratched against the varnish of Veritas’ desk in a discordant melody.

“Time… and time… again, I have tried—“ Veritas found himself saying amidst each thrust. “—to teach you. And still, you still do not seem to learn. What must I do with you to make sure it sticks?”

Aventurine couldn’t even form a coherent response to that. His breaths were occupied by heaving moans and wails that left no room for audible words.

But it was not enough. It wasn’t enough.

A single squeak interrupted the chains of hiccuping sobs as Veritas pulled out, grabbed for Aventurine’s legs and hoisted them up, sending him skidding further up along the desk. A stack of papers collapsed off the side as Aventurine’s arms flung out, scrabbling frantically for purchase on the far edge of the desk.

Veritas did not wait for him to hold on, and in a single thrust, he buried himself back into Aventurine up to the hilt. From this new angle, Aventurine took in even more of his cock than he did before, and Veritas couldn’t help but groan at the deliciously tight heat that squeezed around his shaft as though to milk his release from him.

“A-agh, too—too— deep— V-Veritas, you’reeee too—!” Aventurine finally managed to say through his sobs, but all it did was spur Veritas to draw his hips back slightly, and slam them forward again in a forceful thrust that sent a loud slap of skin against skin echoing throughout his office.

“Who?” he said sharply. “One consultation, and you’ve already forgotten your manners?”

Beneath him, Aventurine took in a heaving breath, trembling with every grind and thrust of Veritas’ cock into his hole. He shook his head frantically, gasping through each word.

“Ver—Veri—! N-no, sorry—ahnghh— I mean— professor—!”

“Good. Two points.”

Veritas’ head spun as each of Aventurine’s hoarse, and slightly pained cries entered his ears. Heat pooled low in his gut and rose steadily to his chest. He was getting close, and he was sure that Aventurine would be too, if not even far beyond the point he should have climaxed at, stopped only by the binding on his cock. But it seemed as though his lover was determined to ride it out.

As that thought crossed his mind, Aventurine’s legs crossed at the ankles around Veritas’ waist, pulling him closer and deeper. In surprise, Veritas made to take a step back, but the legs around his waist locked him firmly into place, pushing him deeper into Aventurine’s tight heat.

Unbalanced, Veritas fell forward, stopped only from crushing his lover by the hand he threw out hastily to brace himself. The unexpected fall placed him directly next to Aventurine’s face, and the sight nearly made Veritas come right then and there.

Aventurine’s face was completely flush, and tears streamed down his face. His nose had run as well, and his lips were bright red from what Veritas guessed must have been biting them in an attempt from him to hold himself back. Drool leaked from the corner of his mouth, and the desk beneath him was covered in splatters of different fluids.

Overcome with emotion, Veritas pulled closer to draw him into a deep kiss, smothering his sobs with his own mouth. It tasted of salt, but also of something completely Aventurine, and it sent his heart into overdrive where it thumped frantically in his chest.

Maybe involuntarily, Aventurine clenched down around his cock, and Veritas finally snapped, groaning into Aventurine’s mouth as his orgasm washed over him in a tidal wave of pure pleasure.

Impossibly, the pressure around his cock increased as he spilled deep into Aventurine, and he felt his own release coat his own cock in bursts of sticky heat.

Mind numbing bliss coursed through Veritas’ body, and Aventurine let out multiple muffled whines into his lips as his legs kicked against Veritas’ waist.

Dazed, Veritas only just managed to remember what he had promised. Aventurine had been through enough. It was time for his reward for playing along so well, and Veritas was not cruel by any means either.

When Veritas’ hand slid over Aventurine’s oversensitive cock, his lover whimpered into his mouth. With a pulse of power, Veritas snapped the Imprisonment. As Veritas brushed his fingertips over Aventurine’s cock, he came with a long, drawn out cry, his entire body jerking from where Veritas pressed him down against his desk.

Splashes of come, thick and hot, drenched his hand as Aventurine twitched through the aftershocks of his orgasm. His walls squeezed erratically at Veritas’ cock, still raw from his recent orgasm, and Veritas hissed slightly. Still, he could do nothing but stay buried within, trapped in place by his lover’s iron grip.

When finally, Aventurine seemed to stop coming, Veritas slowly slid himself free, pressing languid kisses along the line of Aventurine’s neck and shoulders as he went. As he reached for some tissues to clean himself off, he turned to look over his work.

Aventurine lay collapsed on Veritas’ desk, his head pillowed on his forearms. Fresh tear tracks and snot ran down his face, still flushed in a rosy pink from his cheeks all the way to the tops of his shoulders, where dark, scattered lovebites were spread out like a night sky constellation. His carefully styled hair fanned out over his face in messy golden strands, and the papers that Veritas had been meaning to read were now ruined, covered in drops of various bodily fluids. He was still shaking, even, his soft breathing interrupted by the occasional tiny, hiccuping sob that sent fresh pearls of tears rolling down his face.

Beautiful, Veritas’ mind supplied, and he let himself savour the thought for just a moment before he carefully tucked the memory of it away in the neat little space Aventurine had carved out for himself inside his heart.

Mine, his mind offered up to replace that thought, tinged with a hint of growling possessiveness, and Veritas shooed that one away a little more hurriedly. He didn’t want himself to start getting the wrong idea about things. They were months into their relationship now, but he still wanted to be careful about where he stood in regards to some things.

…If anything, he’d be more comfortable with the thought of Aventurine owning him.

His cock twitched at the thought, and Veritas decided to file it away for further consideration later. He probably didn’t have much time to think about such things right now.

Somewhat reluctantly, he tore his gaze away from his lover to the old grandfather clock he kept in the corner of his office. They really had gotten carried away indeed. His next class was due to start soon, and he was still visibly a mess. Tucking himself back into his pants, he pinned his laurel back into place. His hair was somewhat of a lost cause— the best he could do was try and finger comb it back into something resembling neatness with what time he had left.

At least Aventurine hadn’t left any glaring marks this time around—not that it made a difference in the end. He had eventually come to accept them as part of his life now, and trying to cover them up was more effort than it was worth. If his students knew what was best, they’d keep their mouths shut about it.

A quiet dripping sound broke Veritas out of his thoughts. He turned his gaze back to Aventurine.

A thin stream of white was sluggishly flowing out of his puffy hole, pooling on the edge of his desk and dripping off it onto the floor. With every fluttering pulse, more was being pushed out. Veritas watched, half in a daze, as a particularly thick looking glob oozed out and joined the small puddle on his desk.

He shook himself.

That wouldn’t do. Not at all.

With one hand, he reached forward to scoop up the overflow that ran down Aventurine’s perineum, pushing it back into his hole with his finger. The rim almost seemed to clench around the tip of his finger as he did so, and he had to take a moment to ignore the stirring between his legs. They literally could not go again without him being late, even if he wanted to.

He fumbled for his desk drawer with his other hand, and eventually his fingers closed around the plug that Aventurine had worn to see him with. A quick inspection showed that it was still clean, and without any further ado, Veritas gently pressed it against the pucker of Aventurine’s hole, and slid it back in.

It went right in without much resistance, aided by the looseness of the ring of muscle there and the copious fluids held within, and Aventurine jolted with the intrusion, moaning softly.

Though he was tired himself, and he craved nothing else but to pick up his gambler and cuddle him close, unfortunately, there were many things that Veritas still had to do.

From his drawer, he retrieved a soft towel that he had been keeping in there in recent days, cleaning up what he could of the mess on his desk and was running down Aventurine’s legs. Some of the papers would need to be disposed of, and he’d need to print new copies… what a mess. Still, he couldn’t bring himself to regret it.

Putting it aside for the moment, he carefully slid his arms around Aventurine to lift him off the table, taking him over to the lounge. There, he laid him down, sliding a pillow under his head to make it more comfortable. Aventurine did not speak at all during this, and he kept his eyes closed. Veritas did not think he had passed out, but it wasn’t entirely uncommon for him to do so after they had sex. With any luck, he’d wake up soon anyway, and if not, then he would need the rest anyway.

He took the towel with him to the small sink at the back of his office, and returned to the couch with a cup of water and the towel, now damp and clean.

Aventurine’s eyes opened a little bit after Veritas started running the towel over his body, starting with his face, and then his lower body. When he noticed, he paused, and helped him sit up slightly. He retrieved the water he had set aside to pass to his lover, who accepted it with a grateful smile.

“Baby—“ Aventurine began hoarsely, but cut himself off with a slight wince. His voice sounded like he had swallowed a chunk of gravel, and his throat probably felt like it too. Perhaps they had overdone it a little this time…

Veritas shook his head, and leaned across to kiss Aventurine on the cheek.

“Don’t speak,” he murmured, pressing a finger to Aventurine’s lips. “Rest your voice.”

Aventurine looked at him for a moment, and there was something searching in the way his gaze flickered up and down Veritas’ face.

Then, without even breaking eye contact at all, Aventurine’s tongue suddenly lapped up the length of his finger, and Veritas jerked his hand back with an undignified yelp of surprise.

Laughing, Aventurine fell back onto the couch. His laughs were croaky and raspy, sounding more like a crow’s than anything, and a little annoyed, Veritas followed him down, smothering his mouth with his own. As he drank down each of Aventurine’s tiny moans, he gathered the arms that had been thrown over his shoulders, tugging them back until they were thrown over Aventurine’s head. He kept one hand locked around both wrists as his other hand cupped his lover’s face, drawing him in closer.

When they both finally pulled apart, colour had once again risen up in Aventurine’s cheeks, and his eyes were hazy with desire.

“You truly are insatiable,” Veritas growled against his lips, and Aventurine flashed his signature smirk at him, his hands flexing slightly under Veritas’ grip.

“It takes one to know one,” he rasped out in response. “So? What’ll it be?”

“Hm…”

There really was some truth to what Veritas had said earlier. No matter what he did, Aventurine never seemed to learn his lesson, and he could not afford to spend any more time teaching it to him. As a child, Veritas never failed to get his attendance awards in school as well. If his younger self knew how often he ran late now because he simply couldn’t hold himself back from acting like a beast, there would be no end to his disappointment.

No. There truly would only be one way for Aventurine to learn. Perhaps it was only a stopgap measure, but at the very least, it counted for something.

Slowly, Veritas lowered his head, and Aventurine’s eyes flashed, licking his lips in anticipation.

But–at the very last second, Veritas straightened up, pulling off of Aventurine completely. A new, golden Imaginary binding snapped into place where his hand had been, and Aventurine stared at him, his mouth open in shock.

“Let this be a lesson to you, darling,” Veritas said briskly. “The next time you come strutting into my office with intentions to distract me from my work, then you must also be ready to face the consequences of doing so.”

Somewhat unsteadily, he rose to his feet and smoothed out the wrinkles in his clothes with a small grimace. At the very least, some of them would be hidden by his coat soon…

Behind him, Aventurine wriggled against the couch to no avail, the sturdy Imprisonment holding him in place. His legs kicked out against Veritas’ back, and with an unimpressed look, he turned back, catching Aventurine by his outstretched foot.

“Wh… wha… hey…! Where are you going? You can’t– can’t just leave like that!” Aventurine protested, and Veritas raised a brow at him, dropping his leg back down onto the couch.

“I believe I can. I am due for a practical with my medicine students in oh… fifteen? Fifteen system minutes–which is also how long that binding should last. Factoring the time I will require to walk to that part of campus and prepare… Well. Unfortunately for you, I really must be going.” As he turned away, a glint of light had caught his eye. Between Aventurine’s slightly parted legs, the plug had caught the light.

Though… in his haste, Veritas hadn’t even noticed that he’d put the plug in sideways. With a somewhat exaggerated sigh for dramatic effect, he reached out to twist it back into proper position, and Aventurine let out a pitiful whine in response. “Leave it in, will you, darling? I do believe the students would hate to see you leaking all over campus. You really are quite dear to them, you know.”

The look that Aventurine gave him then– half desperate, half outraged, almost had Veritas undoing the binding and apologising– but he held his ground. Aventurine was getting a little too spoiled lately, which was the nicest way of saying that Veritas was getting a little too used to sex in his office. It would do well for the both of them to remember some propriety.

“Your bedside manner is so shit,” Aventurine said, dropping his head back onto the cushion in defeat. Veritas only clicked his tongue, making to collect the things he’d need for his next class. His phone, his codex, a few other assorted items… They really had made a mess of his desk.

“Hm. And you are an unruly patient.”

For all that he said about needing to leave though… Veritas couldn’t help himself. As he crossed the length of his office one last time, he stopped beside Aventurine, and bent down to press a kiss to his forehead.

“… I really do have to leave, though,” he said softly, brushing Aventurine’s bangs away from his face. “I’m sorry. I will be sure to make it up to you later.”

“Hmph, fine. You better.”

“Of course, darling. Perhaps it would be better for you to go home, however…” At this, Veritas trailed off. In theory, it would be good for Aventurine to go home now, but at the same time, he felt a little self conscious about it. That, and he was a little concerned. In the state he was in, could he manage to make it back without collapsing halfway? He was broken out of his thoughts by a dramatic sigh.

“You’re so cold to me,” Aventurine said, turning his head aside and closing his eyes. “Are you really that ashamed of me that you can’t even bear to have me around anymore? You don’t love me anymore? You found some other pretty, young thing to play around with?”

“What? That’s— not— I am not—!“ Veritas spluttered, and Aventurine laughed. He twisted his head to look back at Veritas, a smile playing across his face.

“Hehe, I’m just joking! Don’t forget—“ At this, Aventurine’s gaze grew dark, and the corners of his mouth turned sharp at the edges. “You’re mine now, Doctor Veritas Ratio. Everything… you’ll have to bear it whether you like it or not, because I’m not leaving.”

Veritas’ heart skipped a beat, and he swallowed thickly. This— the eye of the storm and the riptide in the current— he’d willingly give himself to Aventurine without question, without being asked—

“…Unfortunately for you, I am.”

—But that would have to wait until later. He still had a class to teach after all.

Aventurine held his gaze for a moment longer before he broke it with a roll of his eyes, huffing slightly. When he spoke next, however, it was with a fond exasperation.

“So lame. Whatever, then. Go on, go take care of your ducklings.”

“Mm. Then I’ll be going,” For good measure, he left one last chaste kiss on Aventurine’s lips before he stood up. “Take as long as you need. Just make sure to lock up properly before you go, and clean up if you can. It’s fine if you can’t.”

“Yeah, yeah, I got it.”

It was in the doorway that Veritas paused one last time to look back at Aventurine. It seemed that no matter how long had passed, he could never quite believe that this was his life— never quite believe that after all this time, he was allowed to have this. With a sigh and a smile, he snapped his fingers, and the binding came undone with a fizzle of Imaginary energy. Aventurine instantly sat up, rubbing at his wrists with a slightly dazed expression on his face.

“There is just one more thing,” Veritas said. He cleared his throat, and despite himself, he felt the smile on his face grow broader with affection. “I love you.”

Aventurine glanced at him, and a beat passed before a matching smile rose to his face, lighting up the entire room with its brightness.

“…You’re such a dork. I love you too, you big sap. Now get outta here.”

In the end, Veritas was still five minutes late to class. If he smiled to himself under the cover of his bust at the memory of his beloved gambler’s own smile, then the only person who would know would be himself.

Truly, Veritas Ratio was in love, and nothing in the universe could change that.

The issue came several days later.

Veritas would be the first to admit that sometimes, he wasn’t the best at reading the room. But for the past few days, his students had been treating him extremely strangely, and it had gotten to the point that he had finally noticed— or rather, couldn’t ignore it.

He was well aware that not all of his students were enthusiastic about class, but at this point in the semester, he was at least conscious that if they were still in it, then they at least wanted to be. If they weren’t, they would have left long ago. However, that could not explain why nobody volunteered to answer his questions when he would get at least one or two per class before, or why his office consultations had dropped dramatically. All these strange occurrences and more piled up to the point that he had to admit that something had gone awry without him realising it.

Trying to uncover the reason on his own would be a lesson in abject futility.

And so, he resolved to turn to the person whom he knew he could rely on for anything—

“Darling…” Veritas began hesitantly over dinner one day. “You wouldn’t have happened to have heard anything… strange, from my students lately, have you?”

A blob of bolognese fell from Aventurine’s fork and landed back on his plate with a wet splat as he paused, fork halfway to his mouth. A spot of sauce rocketed itself up from the plate and landed on his chin, and Veritas sighed, reaching for a tissue to wipe it off.

As Aventurine set down his fork, his eyes sparkled in delight.

“Ohoho, trouble in paradise, is it?” He chortled, waving a hand. “Issues that even the great Doctor Veritas Ratio can’t solve?”

“D-don’t be ridiculous,” Veritas said, flustered. “I’ve simply noticed an aberration in their regular behavioural patterns around me, and I simply worry for their wellbeing… I haven’t been especially blunt with them as of late, have I?”

If he had, he would need to take a step back and reassess his teaching policy. He tried his best to keep his acerbic tone in check when teaching, to an extent at least, lest it completely demotivate his students, but perhaps the stress of finals season was getting to him as well, and he had inadvertently let his filter slip slightly.

Or, perhaps there was something else happening within the student body he was not aware of…

At this, Aventurine took a long, drawn out sip of his wine. When he finally set it back down, his fingers were framing his face as he looked at Veritas, contemplative.

“Babe. You’re always blunt with them,” he said. “But to answer your question, I don’t think so?”

“You are answering a question with another question, so you aren’t sure either.”

Aventurine snorted slightly, and picked up his fork again. He waved it half heartedly at Veritas, even though it definitely was not safe to do so. He dug it back into his own serving even as Veritas pushed moodily at his own plate, seemingly unconcerned at Veritas’ worries.

“Well, sorry that I don’t have the answers to life, death, and the universe,” he replied mildly through a mouthful of pasta. “What are you trying to say here?”

“I’m concerned for them, that’s all,” Veritas stated plainly. It was not the whole truth, but it was a considerable amount of it. How could he pride himself as an educator when he noticed his students were not acting as they should, and yet was unable to do anything about it?

It left a bad taste in his mouth, which was even more upsetting, considering the effort that Aventurine took to make dinner that day. And he had been looking forward to it all day too.

“I think this goes beyond a little concerned, don’t you think, babe?”

And, as always, Aventurine saw right through him. He didn’t know who he was trying to fool with all of this. Certainly not his lover, who read him as easily an open book. He may as well just swallow his pride now and just speak his mind.

Veritas set down his cutlery with a sigh. His dinner lay half eaten in front of him. Perhaps he’d just pack it up and take it for lunch tomorrow. At the very least, that way, Aventurine’s hard work wouldn’t go completely to waste.

“You may be right, my love,” he said, scrubbing a hand over his face. “But I am unsure if this is something I am able to resolve on my own…”

“Aw, hey, come on, babe, chin up a little, would ya?” In an instant, there was an answering clink of cutlery and scrape of chair against the floor as a pair of arms wrapped around him gently. “C’mere—“

“I am worried about them,” Veritas admitted, dropping his chin onto Aventurine’s shoulder. A pair of hands started rubbing soothingly up and down his back, and he half closed his eyes, taking comfort in the embrace of his most beloved person. “I want to help them as much as I am able to, but that remains impossible as long as they do not feel that they can come to me with their troubles.”

Aventurine hummed in understanding, and one of the hands rubbing at his back shifted upwards to stroke through his hair.

“I think I get it now,” Aventurine said. There was a bloom of warmth at Veritas’ temple where Aventurine leaned in to press a kiss there. “Seriously, you’re too sweet. Just makes me wanna eat you up.”

“You don’t even like sweets that much.”

“Semantics,” Aventurine chuckled. He drew back for a moment, and Veritas’ eyes opened, ready to seek him out and already missing the warmth of his presence. He did not have to look far. Quite suddenly, he found himself with an entire lapful of blonde gambler, and on instinct, he wrapped his arms around Aventurine’s waist to keep him from falling over.

Quite affectionately, Aventurine kissed his head once again, and pulled Veritas’ plate closer to him. Twirling a bite of pasta onto his fork, he lifted it up to Veritas’ mouth, holding his hand underneath to catch any falling sauce. Too defeated to protest, Veritas accepted the pasta, letting Aventurine hand feed him bites of his dinner. It was actually quite an effective tactic for getting him to finish it. A little embarrassing, yes, but in the privacy of their own home, Veritas would allow it.

“There,” Aventurine said once Veritas finished the last part of his food. “Don’t you feel a little better now?”

Just a little. When he nodded, Aventurine grinned, and leaned down for a quick kiss, licking the traces of sauce off Veritas’ lips. Satisfied, he leant back just enough to shift himself into a more comfortable position before he lifted his arms up, hugging Veritas’ head close to his chest.

“Don’t worry about it, Veritas. Everything’ll work out just fine, yeah? Just trust me.” A weight dropped against the top of his head as Aventurine pressed his cheek down in an affectionate nuzzle. “I’ll go do a little snooping, and I’ll see what I can come up with.”

Even though they were already pressed so close together, Veritas couldn’t help but to tighten his hold around Aventurine’s waist. Already, he felt more soothed by his lover’s promise of assistance–and he hadn’t even needed to make it known that it was what he hoped Aventurine could help with. That had been the conclusion that he had come to on his own.

He really needed to find a way to thank him for it. Perhaps their upcoming trip to New Londinium would be a good chance…

For now though, he closed his eyes, and he let himself simply be held.

“Thank you, Kakavasha,” Veritas murmured. “I’m truly grateful to have you.”

In all of the entire universe, there would be nobody that he loved like he loved Kakavasha. How truly blessed he was to be able to know and love him in this life.

“Hey, don’t mention it. We’re partners, right? That’s what partners are for.”

Yes. Indeed, they were partners, in all meanings of the word. From that fateful first meeting with its loaded gun and infinite possibilities all the way to the present, where Veritas washed dishes and flicked suds at the man who dried them at his side, they strode through life together at each other’s sides as equals. That was what it meant to be partners between the two of them.

Veritas just hoped that one day… he just might be able to call him husband as well.

Chapter Text

Chapter Text

Things were on the up and up for Veritas Ratio.

It had taken some thirty-odd years of his life, but he had finally discovered what it meant to love someone and share a home with them.

Granted, this did come off a decade long period of misunderstandings and yearning as well as a near death experience (and the heartbreak, terror, and guilt that came with it), but as long as he told himself they were necessary elements to his growth, then it didn’t seem as depressing.

In any case, he was one step closer to living out the life of his dreams than he had ever thought he would be in his life—not excluding the fact that he had never expected that this was what he wanted.

His work life was good, now that he had considerably less to worry about when chasing after a reckless gambler who didn’t seem to care for his own life—who now did, of all things. His home life was good as well, now that he was greeted by that same gambler at the door when he came home, filling his house and home with warmth and love.

Also, the fact that he was regularly getting laid probably was doing wonders for his mood too.

So, Veritas Ratio was living well. He had a (mostly) fulfilling job, a loving partner, an active sex life, and enough money between the two of them to acquire anything he could ever want or need—not that he was in want or need of much more.

Well, everything, except…

Aventurine may not have noticed, but on occasion, Veritas would see him watching their neighbour’s cat as it basked in the sun on the balcony next to theirs, and a flicker of longing would come over his eyes. He never said anything, only commenting that it was cute, and that the most he’d done was feed his coworker’s pets once when she was held up on a mission beforehand, but Veritas could tell easily that he was longing for a different kind of companionship that he could not fully provide.

That would absolutely not do.

Veritas had encountered some strange critters of a sort before when he visited the Herta Space Station, finding them utterly bizarre and rather chaotic as they wandered unrestrained through the station’s Seclusion Zone. He called them snacks because that was what they looked like. Little cakes, but also possessing a passing resemblance to cats. At least, that was true of the majority of them.

He left that space station sparing them no further thought, but then months passed, and after inviting Aventurine into his bed and his home, the thought of them rose up unbidden in his mind once more.

Of course, it would be much easier for him to simply adopt a normal cat or other domestic pet, but he could not refute the fact that the longer he thought about it, the greater curiosity he held about those strange creatures. And, well, objectively, they were really very cute.

The next trip he had scheduled to head to the space station in order to discuss certain things with Herta regarding the Simulated Universe and his own upcoming collaboration with Screwllum posed the perfect chance for him to do something about it. It was just unfortunate that Aventurine had scheduled a meeting with the Doctor of Chaos assigned to him to oversee his recovery at the same time, or else Veritas would have invited him to come alongside.

Even so, he did not let that deter him at all.

Herta Space Station was just as busy as the last time he had been there. Researchers milled around to and fro as he was escorted to Madam Herta’s office for their scheduled meeting, conducting their everyday lives as the looming shadow of The Blue hovered beneath them from outside the viewing windows.

In any case, the schematics that Herta went over with him regarding her own iteration of the Simulated Universe were clean and coherent enough. As flighty as she was, she was at least quite meticulous about her work. Some of them would have to be adjusted to fit his own parameters, but otherwise, everything was proceeding according to plan, other than the matter of…

“Oh, those critters? Sure, whatever, just take them. Take as many as you want.”

Veritas blinked.

Strangely enough, he had been anticipating more… opposition. But no. His eyes did not deceive him. Herta had not even looked up from her work station, firing off what seemed like several messages to the Simulated Universe development team group chat.

“But— surely there are protocols for this sort of thing!” He spluttered. “Why else would you keep them secluded?”

The Trailblazer had assured him that they were quite harmless when he had asked them about it. He wasn’t the most reassured by their opinion, but they were also one of the few people who had spent any extended period of time taking care of them. There really was something to be said about how beggars could not afford to be choosers there.

“Are there?” Herta said absently. Her joints clicked as she flicked away a side screen on her terminal. “I dunno, then. Figure that out for yourself. Or maybe you can bug Ruan Mei about it, if you can get ahold of her. They just live here, you know?”

Veritas was absolutely not going to ask Ruan Mei about it, no matter how unhelpful Herta was being about the entire situation. They may have been her creations originally, but it was obvious that she did not care for them at all.

He pinched the bridge of his nose, feeling the tickle of a migraine at the back of his eyes.

”Never mind. I will attempt to make some sense of it myself,” Veritas sighed.

Surely, it could not be that difficult to find detailed care records of the snacks somewhere in the Seclusion Zone’s terminals. They were still clearly cared for, so someone must have noted down their observations… somewhere.

In front of him, Herta pulled up something new on her screen, projecting a half modeled item of some sort. While it looked as though she was facing him, he was sure that her attention was focused completely on her projection.

”Yeah sure, whatever,” she said absently. “Didn’t peg you for the type to go for critters like that. It’s not for that blondie IPC guy you like, is it?”

”I— What—? Who—“

”Screwy told us you finally married the guy or something like that,” Herta continued on, oblivious to Veritas’ splutter of shock. Of course it was Screwllum. It had been only once that a sleepy Aventurine had mistakenly wandered into view on a late night video call with him, but evidently that had been enough for the inorganic being to form his own conclusions about Veritas’ relationship status. “Me and Ruan Mei and Stephen, I mean. I’d say good for you, but I don’t really care. I’m only asking because Ruan Mei heard he’s the last of his kind and nagged me to ask you if he’s interested in repopulating his race at all. Say, Ratio, aren’t you also one of the last descendants of the Laurel Wreath—“

“Thank you, Madam Herta, but that will not be necessary—!” Veritas barked out in a rush. The tips of his ears were burning with a familiar flush of heat by now, and he felt the instinct to summon his headpiece to block out his embarrassment.

He was certainly not going to trust Ruan Mei with that either. He and Aventurine had barely been dating for not even a quarter of a year, even if they had known each other for far longer than that. Children was something they hadn’t discussed at all, and he wasn’t sure how he felt about letting Ruan Mei, of all people, have free reign on something that was most definitely Aventurine’s decision to make.

Aeons above, honestly. He knew he hadn’t the best social tact, but if he at least had a little, then Herta seriously had none.

“Hmm,” Herta said. “Suit yourself, Ratio. If you change your mind just let me know and I’ll pass the news onto Ruan Mei.”

“Excuse me—!“ Veritas protested, but the puppet in front of him had already severed the connection, reverting back to its default programming.

He sighed.

Dealing with Genius Society members was always such a big headache, but at least he had as much confirmation as he was going to get that he was free to adopt some of the critters.

He caved to his instinct, and settled his headpiece into place as he stepped out of Herta’s office. Blessed silence washed over him as he left the main zone to take the elevator to the Seclusion Zone. More than a few astonished looks prickled at the back of his head, but Veritas paid it no heed as he continued on.

It was not actually until he had made it past the lingering remnants of the Swarm, into the safe zone that he realised he may have had acted on impulse.

Even if he were to find some suitable critters, who was to say they were even interested in leaving the Space Station with him? For that matter, who knew if they would be able to sustain themselves outside of it? Or even—if Aventurine did not want them, and he had severely misjudged the entire situation?

No.

Veritas shook his head, as if to clear the doubts from his mind. He was committed to seeing his plan through. Of the countless snacks roaming freely around the Station, surely, at least one of them would want to set their sights on… well, not exactly greener pastures, but at least something new?

Even though it had been some time since he had last visited the Seclusion Zone of the Station, it remained largely unchanged as ever. Even as he crossed over the threshold into the greenhouse area, a pair of critters skittered around some planters, hissing and screeching at each other. One seemed to have bandages of a sort wrapped around its tail while the other had a white pastry shell and a spot of orange red on top.

Veritas shook his head and moved on. Too disharmonious. Besides, whatever matter that had caused their argument was between them alone, and who even knew if they would be able to resolve it.

Fortunately enough, he was able to get an overview of the various critters living in the Seclusion Zone from one of the little robots dispatched to take care of them. At the very least, somebody had taken the time to compile an index of them, even if the entries were rather lacklustre.

The index listed their appearances, some basic traits, and a classification. However, even as Veritas went down the list, none of them seemed to really stand out particularly to him. They all seemed like they were too attached to each other, or too energetic, or Aeons forbid, still too attached to the creator who would most likely never come back for them.

He heaved out a sigh. None of these seemed suitable for Aventurine’s situation at all.

Maybe he had truly… been too optimistic?

In any case, it didn’t quite seem like any of these snacks were what he was looking for. Maybe he would have better luck asking for a recommendation from Aventurine’s coworker—Topaz—for a choice of suitable pet for him—

A sudden weight tugging at his sashes broke his train of thought, and he whipped his head around to look over his shoulder.

Two unassuming looking snacks with grey shells had taken hold of his clothes, tugging insistently at them. When Veritas made eye contact with them, they instantly let go, but started yowling loudly, butting at his ankles with their heads.

“What is the matter with you two?” He hissed out, but all it did was prompt one of them to grab hold of his sash again, tugging it in the direction of the… exit.

…Come to think of it, they did look rather panicked.

Veritas’ demeanour shifted instantly.

“Did something happen?” He demanded, and the snack without a mouthful of cloth nodded frantically, whipping its tail towards the door.

Then the matter had to be urgent.

Veritas bent down, and scooped both snacks up in his arms in one smooth motion.

“Show me,” he commanded, and with twin warbles of reply, he set off in a determined stride towards the corridors of the Seclusion Zone.

It did not take long for him to run into trouble. 

The incessant buzzing noise was the first clue that Veritas received as to the source of the snacks’ distress. The further along the hall he went the louder it became.

As he continued down the hall, the more restless they became in his arms, until they finally jumped down, looking up at him with teary eyes, and then to an area just ahead of them hidden around a corner.

He followed their gaze, cautiously peering around the side.

Sure enough, there was a pair of True Stings hovering around a cluster of supply containers. When one of them hovered a little higher, Veritas could finally pinpoint why.

Another critter, identical in appearance to the two that had come with him, was huddled behind the supplies, quivering in fear. Its tail was tightly tucked against its body, the soft gelatine of its shell wobbling with the force of its trembles.

Not for the first time, Veritas drafted a scathing comment in his mind, addressed to Ruan Mei, Herta, and whatever witless researcher who had been so careless as to let these snacks roam free without checking on them. With the remnants of the Propagation as persistent as they were, it was something like this was bound to happen.

He sighed. Once again, it seemed as though he was tasked to clean up after them again.

“Stay behind me,” he ordered the pair of snacks, and drew out part of his Imaginary power as he stepped forward.

The first hurl of chalk shaped energy struck true against the shell of the overlarge insect on the right, and it let out a shrill chitter of pain as it whirled around, compound eyes locking onto Veritas. The other one rushed at him, and Veritas sidestepped its charge, calling another chalk to his fingertips. The one he had hit followed along right behind, and this time, it brushed close enough that he could feel the air disrupted by its wings buffeting at his arm.

He swatted it away impatiently with his codex, and it hit the wall with a heavy thud and a loud shriek. He followed it up with the chalk he had summoned, striking it in the weak spot left behind by his prior blow, and with a final death rattle, it promptly exploded in a shower of dark slime.

One down.

The other one had purple lights flickering ominously over its carapace when he turned to face it, and Veritas let out a quiet curse under his breath. It was about to split off another copy.

He summoned two chalk in quick succession.

The first nailed it squarely between the eyes, and it reared back in pain, screeching loudly. Veritas followed it up with another strike in the exact same spot, driving the piece already lodged in its head deeper, and with a full body shudder, the True Sting burst apart into sludge.

Fortunately, neither of the bugs’ remains had landed on Veritas, but the ground and walls were an entirely different matter. Grimacing, he gingerly stepped around the mess until he was near the supplies.

He bent down.

“The matter has been dealt with. You are safe now,” he told the little critter, and after a moment, it stopped shaking and peered up at him with round eyes.

Veritas hesitated for a moment, but spread his arms, and with a wail, the snack flung itself into his waiting arms, burrowing its face into his chest.
He sighed.

Somehow, he had a feeling that he knew where this was going.

Sure enough, the little snack in his arms didn’t budge at all even as he returned to the relative safety of the Base Zone, its companions taking their places on his shoulders. Fortunately, it did seem to calm down enough once he started stroking over the top of its pastry shell.

In any case, it was about time that he returned home.

“Yes, I’ll be–Oh my gosh, Doctor, is everything alright?!”

“Please arrange for sector 18 of the Seclusion Zone to be cleaned,” Veritas told a shocked looking Lead Researcher Asta. “And perhaps a carrier for these three, should you have it,” he added after a moment’s thought.

Aventurine greeted him at the door when Veritas finally returned home, towing his luggage behind him and with a tall carrier under his arm. The three snacks were comfortably stacked within, thankfully needing little encouragement to jump in of their own volition when he had produced it back at the space station. Perhaps it was a good thing that they were clever enough to understand the meaning of his words.

After explaining the situation to Asta, she had recovered with remarkable alacrity, sending her head of security and a handful of other staff to check on things immediately.

“I’m glad these little ones have someone to take care of them now!” she had said cheerfully, petting each one on the head as they waited for the carrier to be delivered. “Ah, not that we don’t take care of them down there… but I’d rather they go out and see new things rather than stick around there forever!”

Veritas very pointedly did not make a comment on how he thought otherwise, considering the state that he found them in, no matter how much he wished to. It was too much of an argument that he had no energy to spare.

Either way, he had departed from the Space Station not long after, and within a day, he had returned home to Veritas Prime, and Aventurine.

The cardigan that his lover was wearing looked oddly familiar, and after a moment it clicked in Veritas’ mind. it was one of his own, taken straight from his closet and a few sizes too large for Aventurine. He looked as though he was positively drowning in it, but there was no small part of Veritas’ heart that wanted to sweep him up in his arms and kiss him for all he was worth.

He wrapped those feelings up and set them aside for the moment. There would be time for all that and more later on.

“Welcome home, babes!” As if reading his mind though, Aventurine moved to kiss him sweetly. He had to lean up on tiptoe to do it, but the pleasant warmth from where his lips had pressed to Veritas’ cheek suffused his entire body. It had only been a few days, but he’d missed Aventurine sorely.

“Thank you, my dear,” he said warmly, and he noted with a thrill of satisfaction at how Aventurine seemed to glow at the address. Truly, he could never have imagined in his lifetime that he would ever be so fortunate as to have someone to return to, welcoming him home with open arms, a smile, and a kiss.

Of course, the carrier under his arm was not inconspicuous at all, and Veritas was acutely aware of the way Aventurine’s gaze settled on it, his head tilting slightly in curiosity.

“Hm? Whatcha got there, Veritas? My present?”

And before he could do so much as even protest, Aventurine prised the carrier out from under his arm. Caught off guard by the weight, he almost dropped it before he managed to regain his balance.

“Why is it so heavy?!” He exclaimed, looking toward Veritas helplessly.

“Come with me,” Veritas replied, shaking his head.

Leaving his luggage in the hall for the moment, he gently shepherded Aventurine towards their living room, leading him down to kneel on the floor.

“I—er—I realise that this may come across as somewhat sudden, but indeed, I have… a gift, of sorts,” Veritas began, his speech somewhat stilted. Despite how much he had practised it in his mind when returning from Herta Space Station, he was still finding himself rather tongue tied.

Aventurine only blinked at him.

“Perhaps it will be easier to just show you,” he decided.

He set the carrier between them, and with careful motions, undid the clasps to let it fall open.

A beat passed, and then, the topmost snack pulled itself out of the carrier, plopping onto the hardwood flooring beneath them with a muted splat sound. A moment later, the other two followed, and the three of them shook themselves out with a curious wobbling sound.

A hitched breath had Veritas looking up, and he followed it to Aventurine, whose eyes were terribly soft. With a nod of encouragement, he stretched out his hand for one of the snacks to sniff, and after a moment, its pink tongue darted out to lick his fingertips, and he grinned in delight. He looked back up at Veritas.

“Oh my gosh… They’re adorable! What are they?”

“Snacks created by the Genius Ruan Mei,” Veritas informed him. “They’ve been referred to as catcakes by the Station staff before, if that is easier for you to understand.”

“Um, not really? But that’s fine, you can just tell me later. Come here, little guy, that’s it…”

With another encouraging nod from Veritas, this time directed at the three snacks, they inched forward to crowd around Aventurine’s knees. He ran a hand over the tops of their shells, letting out a thoughtful noise.

“In any case, there are dozens upon dozens of them wandering around there,” Veritas continued. “They were abandoned on their creation, you see—“

“What?” Aventurine interjected, his eyes wide with surprise. “Why? They’re so cute!”

“The priorities of Geniuses are not those that any of us mundanes could ever believe to understand, dear gambler,” Veritas said dryly.

He shuffled a little closer, and held out his hand. One of the snacks scurried backwards to rub against his wrist, and he curled his fingers to pet the top of its head.

“Wait, did you say they were made?”

“Correct. They were incubated in a device known as a Lifeform Oven…”

It wasn’t until ten minutes later, when Veritas registered the blank look on his all three snacks’ and his lover’s face, that he realised that the question hadn’t actually been an invitation to elaborate on them.

He coughed.

“My apologies,” he said sheepishly. “Rest assured, these snacks are very adaptable creatures, and they will quickly acclimatise to this planet and our home.”

“That wasn’t really what I was worried about, but uh, good to know,” Aventurine said mildly.

In the time that it had taken for Veritas to run through his explanation, the three snacks had found themselves stacked solidly atop each other in Aventurine’s lap, his arms curled loosely around them. Veritas almost wondered if he should take his phone out to photograph this moment. Something to commemorate this occasion…

“Have you named them yet? Or, do they have names already?” Aventurine asked, and Veritas paused, shaking his head. That was an oversight of his he’d failed to account for.

“Then, how about I name them?” Aventurine proposed, and Veritas nodded.

“By all means.”

Aventurine slipped an arm under the tower of critters and placed the palm of his other hand atop the topmost snack, and raised them up to look at them appraisingly. It was not completely unlike the one that was on his face at the gambling table occasionally, where he judged the security of going all in, or folding for the round.

“Hmm… This one can be Rummy! And this one will be… Eights! Which means this little one is Fish!”

With each name assigned, he traced a finger down the side of the tower before finally looking to Veritas for what he almost thought was approval.

“Card games, really, darling?”

“I’m keeping to my brand,” Aventurine said with a slight sniff. “If you wanted them to have other names you should have picked them out yourself.”

Of course Veritas wasn’t going to do that. That honour belonged entirely to Aventurine. His ability to make up names on the spot, or even after long consideration was sorely lacking, after all. It had taken a whole team of editors to whip the titles of some of his publications into shape.

“No, it’s quite alright. They’re excellent names,” he acquiesced, kissing the top of Aventurine’s head.

Appropriate enough, at least. Though, if they started developing unhealthy gambling habits similar to their new owner, then perhaps he would need to hold an intervention.

Veritas pulled back slightly, and pulled Aventurine’s hands into his own. He flicked his gaze between the three snacks, who had now moved away from them to explore around the room, and Aventurine, who was smiling back up at him. The very sight of it made Veritas’ heart lurch, and he exhaled softly.

“Do… you like them?” he asked a little unsurely, and a flash of shock spread across Aventurine’s face before it morphed back into an even bigger smile.

“Yes! Goddess above, yes! They’re wonderful!” Aventurine kissed him on the cheek again, and when he pulled away, Veritas couldn’t help but to lean after him in a daze, seeking more of his warmth. “Thank you. I love them. I don’t even know what to say. I never thought I’d… never mind. It’s not important.

“But you really should have told me earlier!” Aventurine continued, slipping his phone out of his pocket. “We don’t have anything for them! Hmm, I guess it’s just for one day, right? If we put in the order, we can pay for express shipping, and they’ll be here tomorrow morning at the earliest.”

Well… that was another one of Veritas’ oversights, then. He had been so preoccupied with actually finding snacks for Aventurine as a surprise, and then irrationally wondering if he would be happy with them that he had actually failed to account for the reality of keeping pets.

Dear Nous. And they were keeping pets now, weren’t they? They really were a bonafide couple now.

Veritas stood back up, and helped to pull his lover up as well, leading them over to the couch. He took a seat, and Aventurine joined him immediately, sitting down with a soft whump. He wasted no time in leaning into Veritas’ side, even as his attention stayed fixed on the shopping app open on his phone.

“Okay, so we’ll need toys and things, um… food? What do they even eat? Hey, babe, what do they eat—”

Yes. Things were truly on the up and up for Veritas Ratio.

Here, right now, in his home full of warmth and love, he did not think that he could ever truly be happier.

Well, perhaps, except if that were to happen in the future…

Only time would tell, but strangely enough, he had a feeling that luck would be on his side.