OOM: Asher's Room
Damian approaches Asher's room with steady, even steps. He is fresh from a talk with Nathaniel, and since dawn is still hours away, he deems his business with a certain blond vampire too important to wait for the following evening.
Over a glass of milk and a snack on the couch by the fireplace in the bar, Nathaniel had told him the basics of what happened. He knows Asher went to find Nathaniel. He knows that Asher offered little pieces of information, small glimpses of possible intimacy, and then spoiled it all by turning everything into another session of emotionally needy sex.
He also now knows that Asher and Jean-Claude have rekindled their long-withheld intimacy, and while part of him is incredibly satisfied by the knowledge, he had seen the look in Nathaniel's eyes as the message was delivered. The wereleopard's posture, pulse, and breathing would have been enough to alert him to something being wrong, but those eyes had been filled with hurt and uncertainty... and resignation. He could see what Nathaniel hadn't told him, what could be read between the lines: Nathaniel no longer knows his place in Asher's world.
It's overwhelmingly clear to Damian that Nathaniel and Asher love one another, but it's also striking to him that every time Nathaniel and Asher meet up since he came into the bar, they have sex that doesn't seem to leave them completely satisfied. Something is keeping Asher from establishing a good foundation with Nathaniel, and though it isn't really any of his business, he has it in his mind that he can help.
Perhaps he's just digging his own grave, but this time he's willing to take the risk.
There is neither scent nor sound of company in Asher's room.
Damian knocks.
Over a glass of milk and a snack on the couch by the fireplace in the bar, Nathaniel had told him the basics of what happened. He knows Asher went to find Nathaniel. He knows that Asher offered little pieces of information, small glimpses of possible intimacy, and then spoiled it all by turning everything into another session of emotionally needy sex.
He also now knows that Asher and Jean-Claude have rekindled their long-withheld intimacy, and while part of him is incredibly satisfied by the knowledge, he had seen the look in Nathaniel's eyes as the message was delivered. The wereleopard's posture, pulse, and breathing would have been enough to alert him to something being wrong, but those eyes had been filled with hurt and uncertainty... and resignation. He could see what Nathaniel hadn't told him, what could be read between the lines: Nathaniel no longer knows his place in Asher's world.
It's overwhelmingly clear to Damian that Nathaniel and Asher love one another, but it's also striking to him that every time Nathaniel and Asher meet up since he came into the bar, they have sex that doesn't seem to leave them completely satisfied. Something is keeping Asher from establishing a good foundation with Nathaniel, and though it isn't really any of his business, he has it in his mind that he can help.
Perhaps he's just digging his own grave, but this time he's willing to take the risk.
There is neither scent nor sound of company in Asher's room.
Damian knocks.