"You’re right." Cass said in between bouts of laughter. "You did bite me against my will, force this bond on me and then started parading around like you fucking owned me. You did do exactly that. You also made it obvious to fucking anyone with a set of working eyes that two men were involved in a time and place where that’s illegal, and punishable by death. While fully knowing that my grandfather is the head of ’I hate the gays’ party. You did do all of that." Cass said, a stupid smile touching his lips. God, he really shouldn’t be smiling right now.
Lucian looked like he’d swallowed a damn lemon with each word out of Cass’ mouth.
"However, you were also there for me when I couldn’t support myself. You saved my life shortly after you killed me. From a pack of wolves I was unable to defend myself against because I’d lost the ability to use my magic. A slight technicality due to me dying and all. Technically, you only killed me once. I’ll have died three, mm, maybe four times by the time my mission is complete." Cass joked while knowing no one else would find it funny.
"Why are you laughing?" Lucian asked, sounding upset. Cass laughed.
"Why wouldn’t I be? This whole fucking situation is absurd. No one expects that they are going to be given a second chance at life, Lucian. No one. Not even my cunt of a bitch Mother expected that." Cass said and Edgar sputtered behind him. Cass didn’t look back. "She doesn’t have a second chance at life, she’s just the demon king’s current flavour of the month." Cass said and he heard Lord Ridgewood gasp behind him. Cass snorted as Lucian stared at him, stunned.
"Cass, this is serious. I-" Lucian started again and Cass giggled. Lucian cut himself off after hearing the sound leave Cass’ lips.
"I know this is serious." Cass said, his lips twitching as he continued to laugh and giggle. "I know that better then any fucking other person in this damn room. That doesn’t mean that this isn’t fucking hysterical. I, the only one who might have a semblance of an understanding of what’s going on here, is still being surprised by everyone else’s bullshit. The gods are tricking me, the demons are tricking me, they’re tricking each other. They’re using me as some damn trojan horse and trying to plant me on either side. Meanwhile, I have you guys and everyone else type casting me as a villain when there was a chance that I was going to be that, but that does not end well for me. I will not be playing the part of a villain thank you. Been there, done that, I’m good." Cass said.
"What did you just say?" Lord Ridgewood asked and Cass waved his hand dismissively.
"Don’t listen too deeply, Lord Ridgewood. You aren’t going to get answers that you’ll like if you poke too deeply." Cass warned with a giggle. "Either way, I get it. This is a lot. Why the hell did you think I tucked my head down when I first awoke with everything so fucked up at the beginning and just...stayed low? This was the very reason." Cass said and Lucian was still crying. He sniffed, looking like a sad, handsome man and Cass frowned. "Please stop crying. It’s very upsetting." Cass told him and that somehow made the other man cry more.
"I can’t stop. I am upset." Lucian said. "All of the words you are saying are going in one ear and out the other. I’m just upset." He said and Cass felt like the hysteria wasn’t leaving, but that was okay. He could channel it into other things.
Like...giving Lucian a hug.
Cass let go of his arm and instead reached his arms around the other man and hugged him. Even as Lucian went stiff as a board, the man didn’t reject him. He didn’t shuffle away, he didn’t raise his arms to break contact. He just went stiff.
"W-What are you doing?" Lucian asked, his voice wavering and wimpy. Cass tilted his head back, looking past the man’s pecs and up.
"I’m comforting the big dumb idiot of a dragon who is currently bound to me through a bitemark. What do you think I’m doing?" Cass asked and watched as Lucian’s face crumbled more.
"What? You’re supposed to be getting comforted right now." Lucian whispered and a loud, obvious sigh sounded from behind them.
"Yes, he is, so you should feel bad about that." Edgar told him snootily. Edgar actually sounded far closer than Cass anticipated, but before he could turn his head to check where he was, a set of arms came around him from behind and also wrapped around Lucian. "However, I can do that part if you aren’t going to pull your tail out from between your legs. Just now, I’m going to be so much closer to Cass after this. We won’t even need you around." Cass wasn’t sure if Edgar was teasing him or not.
Lucian, however, was in a delicate state of mind and being. He broke Cass’ and Edgar’s hold on him only to reach out and grasp onto both of them tighter. He sniffed, loudly, before letting out a loud exhale.
"No." He protested. After all that work up, that was all he said. Cass wanted to laugh at the man. Edgar did.
"Is that all the big dragon has to say? Not that you’re going to make it up to Cass after doing what you did? What any of us did? To a man who is literally trying to save the world when the world clearly was working against him from the beginning?" Edgar asked and Lucian shuddered. He held onto them tightly as Cass heard obvious, loud shuffling behind them.
Lord Ridgewood was making sure that they knew he was here. Cass, for a moment, thought that he was doing so to point out to them that he was against their actions. However, that wasn’t the case.
"I agree with Eddie. We have a lot to make up for when it comes to Cass. If part of that also involves having to make up for an attempted death, I think running is the more cowardly thing to do." Lord Ridgewood said. "Standing your ground, being honest about your screw ups, and realising that you need to change your way of thinking and being is the smarter, more mature way of handling this kind of situation." Lord Ridgewood said. Cass felt his lips curl slightly at him saying it with such conviction, and then clearing his throat. "Of course, that is just what I think. You are free to have a different opinion." He said, leaving a bit of wiggle room.
Cass would call that backtracking, but given how hostile Lucian had been towards him over the last few days? Especially ever since he found out he was coming to live with them again? Lord Ridgewood had some right to cover his ass.
"Lucian, I know you’re upset, and I’m sorry I had to tell you now, but honestly, it’s better for you to know then not know." Cass said, speaking gently. "I didn’t tell you because I wanted to get back at you. I was telling you so that you’d have some sympathy for Lord Ridgewood and his situation. So that you would be able to put yourself in his shoes. Edgar hasn’t fully forgiven him, but he isn’t treating him like scum on the bottom of his shoe. I’m not treating him that way either. Out of everyone here, I should be just, taking Lord Ridgewood outside and beating the shit out of him. I’m not though." Cass said and watched as Lucian’s lips twitched.
"You’d have to use magic to do that." Lucian said and Cass rolled his eyes.
"I can use my hands." Cass said and Lucian snorted softly.
"You’d break them. He’s a holy knight. He could hurt you, even if he is human." It was so clearly a dig at Lord Ridgewood, but the man would just have to be grateful for how far Cass had talked the man back from where he had been before.
"I have the healing tonic." Everyone made a face at that. Edgar made a noise of complaint in the back of his throat.
"Please. Use that as sparingly as you can. It’s awful watching you drink that vile substance." Edgar pleaded and Lucian rumbled in agreement. His whole chest vibrated, and since Cass was pressed between him and Edgar’s back, it was a rather odd experience.
"What? I’ve been using it as much as I wanted to before this. I was immune to how bad it tasted before this." Cass was lying. He had no idea how anyone could react normally to drinking that sludge.
"Don’t lie. I know that you were more stoic before this, but you’ve changed since coming back to us. There is no way after witnessing how you drink it twice that you don’t think it tastes awful. I don’t even want to try it." Edgar said, shuddering, and Lucian chuckled.
"It tasted like nothing to me. I had some secretly when no one was paying attention. Just a bit grainy." Lucian said and Lord Ridgewood let out a sigh.
"If it’s made from demon blood, you should probably not consume it, Eddie. You could have the same kind of reaction as Cass. It might work as an alternative healing tonic, but since you can receive the healing powers of the temple, I wouldn’t take it as your primary like Cass does." Lord Ridgewood suggested.
Cass could feel the hysteria slowly fading now that he was pressed between two men and slowly he could feel embarrassment begin to wash over him.
"Uh, could you let me go?" Cass asked softly. Edgar and Lucian glanced down at him and realised that Cass was turning the shade of a tomato. Cass could feel their gazes on him and when he glanced at them, Lucian was a little surprised while Edgar was grinning.
"Feeling a little shy after declaring you were going to comfort him? That’s rather silly of you, now isn’t it, Cass?" Edgar teased and Cass felt his face warm more. Lucian glanced at Edgar, before he hauled the two men closer to him, lifting them up. Cass let out a shout, worried as Lucian carried both of them as they were before he plopped himself down on the couch and adjusted them until they were sitting in his lap.
Edgar looked rather content, while Cass felt so damn embarrassed.
It was just Lord Ridgewood, but that didn’t make it better. He didn’t like behaving like this with others watching. He wasn’t Fiona. Or hell, it was probably Lady Ava who was more of the voyeur of the two. She probably wanted others to know about Fiona, since she spoke of marking her and stuff.
Lord Ridgewood didn’t make the moment any easier, either. He was staring at them rather intently, like he was trying to piece together something and Cass was a little worried about what it was that he was seeing that Cass wasn’t.
Feeling his heated gaze on him only made Cass nervous, anxious.
"So, my sweetness doesn’t want me to disappear?" Lucian asked softly and because Cass was so nervous from the position and gaze on him, Cass reacted honestly, and loudly. He let out a loud scoff and rolled his eyes.
"Why the fuck would I want you to disappear?" Cass asked, before he felt his face warm and he jerked towards Lucian. Lucian was in shock, before a wide, goofy grin split his face.
"You don’t? Awe. Does that mean you like me?" Lucian asked and Cass, panicked, gave him a disgusted look.
"Don’t push your luck." Cass told him and Lucian wasn’t even phased. Edgar chuckled, smiling at them.
"He’s just shy." Edgar said, sounding like he was speaking to just Lucian but he said it loud enough that he knew Lord Ridgewood could hear it too. Cass’ face was so warm he had no idea what to do.
How did such a serious conversation get so off track?