Verity (Mavi)

XX

Hello! Back from the dead (for now). Sorry if I'm not responsive -- I'm still going through some family stuff. Love you all :)

--

Avriel really, really didn't like it when things didn't go according to plan.

It was simple. If his master plan were going to work, he needed Mitch to like Avriel a great deal more than he already did, and there were very few reasonable ways of making that happen.

Since Avriel already teleported him a few times before, he decided the best and easiest way to gain Mitch's utmost admiration was by letting him spend a few hours in whatever random location in the world he wanted, and just like that, he would be grateful to have a benevolent god like Avriel in his life.

Except... things didn't work out exactly that way, because things never quite worked out for Avriel when Mitch was involved.

Of all the places to pick, Mitch chose the streets of Tokyo, and Avriel was barely willing to let himself get dragged around as his dove's doe eyes lit up with every dazzling light on the street. He smiled at everyone he saw, he twirled in the streets, he grinned so brightly that it twinkled in the night and shamed the neon signs above them, and he fit perfectly into the culture he'd only been introduced to a few hours ago with ease.

Avriel was starstruck the entire time. Who knew such a no-one from nowhere could stand out in a crowd of thousands? But he wasn't no one, and he wasn't from nowhere. He was Mitch Grassi, and he was important, and maybe he stood out to no one except Avriel and that's why his plan wasn't working out quite right.

He was never supposed to grow a soft spot for the boy. Never. It was impossible for him. He was a demon, and demons were cold and dead and never felt a warmness in their chests when someone smiled. It was so impossible.

But something about the boy's smile twisted his stomach in a way that wasn't unpleasant, and the hand gripping Avriel's was warm and soft. It made him feel not so dead inside, so he gave into the pull of his smile, and he hated himself for it. He hated it, he fucking despised it, and he couldn't wait until their adventure was over the entire time.

Now, they found themselves cooling off on the highest mountain of St. Lucia, hiding in the shade and admiring the view in front of them. Mitch had wanted to go somewhere quiet and he didn't care where, so Avriel picked the most serene and awe inspiring place he knew of.

"Ya know, I don't know why you don't talk about yourself more," his dove said through his last mouthful of sushi, eyes squinting against the harsh sunlight as he looked at the clear ocean before them. "I never know what to say, and you're obviously this intelligent and beautiful creature with thousands of years under your belt. Why don't you ever talk about yourself?"

Avriel chuckled and exhaled the smoke from his cigarette through his nose, keeping his eyes locked on the dazzling horizon and fighting the itch to look over and admire his boy. "There's nothing to say," he said coolly, lips moving around his cigarette with nonchalance. It was a shitty answer, and one that obviously didn't invite Mitch in for more conversation. It was perfect.

It was silent for a while, and Avriel scowled quickly for a few seconds. He so desperately wished that he didn't regret not continuing the conversation, and he especially wished he didn't want to hear the sound of Mitch's voice. "I'd bore you silly," he finally said carefully. "You're so sweet that it's fucking cloying -- but I promise you there's nothing to share."