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video; @The Seventh Crown of the Seventh Demon King;

[ In media res: there's a video feed sharpening into focus, blobs of silver and pink and purple neon resolving into a staircase leading down to a metal door gleaming clean under the artificial lighting around it. Midnight's standing at the door, looking up at the camera and the person filming with his phone, grinning one of his worryingly unhinged grins. ]

How is it, Kaveh? I'd ask you for my best angle, if I had any bad angles.

[ This conversation does... persist... but as the video continues, it becomes perfectly clear that this terribly disorganized promotion is for a bar of some sort. Midnight makes it clear later when he reclaims the camera, hops onto the bar, and aligns himself in the frame in a way that lights both his face and the sign behind him, a rose-lit confection announcing the name of the bar: Seventh Hell Host Club. ]

That's where we are. Do you see that? My name is Midnight, and this is my host club, Seventh Hell. We're near the southernmost station on Line 1. Kaveh and I have been working terribly hard on this establishment, and all of you have his genius and design sense to thank for this momentous occasion. Please do thank him personally. Make a great fuss about it. Remind him that sleep is a temporary state that he should indulge in more often, preferably with me. Thank you.

[ Kaveh is definitely taking the phone at this point, but later on, Midnight will retrieve it and add a postscript. He is sitting in some sort of underground greenhouse this time, surrounded by mist, glass, flowers, and the glow of sun-tinted halogen lights. Regardless of the promo quality, the greenhouse itself is certainly an impressive feat of engineering. ]

Yes, this is one of several themed rooms here at Seventh Hell. You — yes, you — are personally invited to see it. When? Well, whenever you like, so long as the doors are open, but on the 31st of this month... Ahem.

[ He clears his throat, grins. ]

For the turn of the year, you are cordially invited to Seventh Hell's Grand Opening and New Year's Eve joint celebration. Or something like that, I'll come up with a grander name if necessary. There will be drinks, music, a tour of the premises, games, untold bliss, fantasies, beautiful women, beautiful men, myself among them, possibly fireworks if Kaveh can be convinced that I won't set the place ablaze... You won't want to miss out, I promise.

The doors will open at 6 pm, but come by anytime before then, from now until the New Year, if you'd like to enjoy the premises in relative solitude. Send a message to this account if you'd like to be assured of a bartender, or a friendly face to speak to. If I can't come personally, a host or hostess will be there, ready to welcome you to a night of merriment and pleasant conversation.

So, until then... Seventh Hell awaits you.

[ A wink, and the feed shuts off. ]

[ ooc: Along with normal network replies, current host club employees and staff are welcome and encouraged to reply to this post as though Midnight's included them in an impromptu promotion for the club! You can also use this post for post-promo, off camera conversations with him or anyone else in the host club. Go stupid, go wild, go crazy, threadjack, steal his phone and flush it down a toilet. Honestly, the sky is the limit. ]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

No need to, sure, but I'm the one offering.

[he doesn't mind it, he's not particularly taken by any scent in particular...

but he's certainly curious, now that midnight mentions there's more to it than that.]

... what kind of history?

[ Midnight pats Netzach's hand again, opens his mouth for another bite of bread, then chews and swallows properly before reaching out, snagging a handful of grapes. He offers one to Netzach, hovering it in front of his mouth. ]

Vampires are a people of constant strife. Of all the Sarkaz tribes, we are the longest lived, so the culture runs deep. If the vampires have no one to fight, we turn on ourselves. Well... those are the old ways, anyhow. Seems terribly exhausting, mm? Self-destructive, not at all constructive.

[ He puts a grape in his own mouth, chews. ]

But that's the way it was. And naturally, in war, one needs a way to mark allies, companions, comrades, as one's own.

[ He taps Netzach's neck. ]

There. That's where the scent branding would go. It's a stamp marked into the skin. Traditionally, it's a mixture of a vampire's favorite scents. No two scents are alike. It's both a ward and a signal; it shows that you are under another vampire's protection, and if properly marked, indelibly, permanently, one's vampire can track the mark across nations.

[ ... He hums. ]

Never did like it much. It's a culture of ownership, really. I want my friends to be free to go where they will without signaling me to their every movement. And scent is a very individual thing. One ought to smell the way one likes.

[he accepts the grape, chewing it slowly, thoughtfully, while midnight speaks. turning on themselves when there are no external enemies... that sounds about right to him, from his experience with the city he comes from. remove the other threats, and they'll start finding other problems they want to fight over. someone has something they want. someone disagrees violently with another.

peace is always such a short-lived thing.

netzach is quiet after he finishes explaining, finishing his bread during it and moving on to steal another grape while he contemplates.]

So asking me to wear particular scents-- it'd feel more like an ownership thing for you?

[a little hum of his own.]

Even if I still didn't mind it? It's not like I really care how I smell or anything, I started going for stronger scents in the first place because you're probably more aware of it than I ever have been.

[ Midnight looks at Netzach, pink eyes thoughtful, slightly lidded. Eventually, he catches Netzach's face, smoothing back his hair. ]

Perhaps it's more the case that I don't want to leave any room for misunderstanding. You are my artist, but you aren't mine to the exclusion of others. And scent is a powerful influence on me. I don't want to push others away from you in the name of an old, outdated instinct.

[ There's some more nuance to it, but Midnight picks at his grapes instead, watching his hands, thinking of a way to phrase it first. ]

In a way... the scent is supposed to remind a vampire of home. And the concept of home is quite loaded for a Sarkaz. I wouldn't mind giving you a few scents to work with, if you like, but I'd prefer that you find something you like yourself, or at least try mixing mine with something of your own. I like you, the way you smell at any given point included.

[ This is the kindest way to put it. The truth is that Midnight has an inclination toward possessiveness, jealousy. The young host ran afoul of it. Midnight does not intend to repeat the same mistakes, no matter how small.

(Murder is not a small mistake. Midnight is very conscious of that.) ]

Mm... It'll probably end up getting mixed anyway just from living with Yesod. I'm probably not going to bother keeping everything separate.

[he's lazy, midnight knows this about him. why keep picking up separate soap for two people when they use the same shower anyway? it's just convenient. he'd end up using yesod's stuff if he ran out, in either case...

(and if midnight's worried about feeling like he'll want to push others away, maybe it'll also be convenient if there's a shared element there between himself and yesod.)]

Give me the ones you'd be okay with me working with... and tell me any you don't want me to wear, if they'd hit too close for you.

[scent is linked to memory, and the association can be powerful for people who aren't vampires. he doesn't want to trip into anything that'd make it unpleasant.]

...think there are parts of it I'm not really going to understand on the same level, though. The concept of home's loaded for you, but it doesn't really exist for me in the first place.

Edited 2023-12-15 10:34 (UTC)

[ Midnight thinks for a moment, then snags another piece of bread, begins jamming it up. If Netzach smells like Yesod too... Well, the solution is to get more familiar with the way Yesod smells. Getting used to his scent will remind him that smelling him on Netzach isn't a threat, that all is well. Right. Hopefully, Yesod won't object to a bit of friendly sniffing every now and then. ]

I like wisteria. And vanilla. Specifically vanillin, the stuff old books smell like. I don't think those two work particularly well together, so using one or the other may work... Ah, champagne would be lovely too.

[ Midnight nods to himself, hands over the second slice of bread once Netzach's done with the first. The scents that Netzach would want to avoid... Well, they're rather unpleasant to the human nose, anyway. ]

You grew up among other orphans, did you not? I can see how that's stunted your conception of what a home is like.

[ Midnight tilts his head. ]

Would you like one? A home.

[wisteria, vanilla, champagne... he nods as he commits the list to memory, taking a couple bites from the new slice of bread. they're not quite what he'd have guessed, if he had to, but thinking about it? they suit midnight.

he wonders, briefly, if he smells at all like books when he's in the city. in the library. back there, he technically is a living book, so wouldn't it make sense...

well, he should just be relieved he doesn't now.]

I did, yeah. Since before I could remember anything. I never knew who my parents were, or if they were alive or dead, so... the best I could do to know anything about myself was guess based off the name they gave me. The one I had before I was 'Netzach'.

[another bite of bread, a little hum.]

I do. I think at this point, it's... something I have to make for myself, probably. We're almost done with the new place, but we haven't even lived there yet, I don't know if that's going to feel like it.

[... especially since it's going to start off feeling a little empty. roland was going to move there with them; his face falls a little, remembering that.]

[ Midnight isn't too certain what Netzach is besides perfectly human enough to love, but that's enough for him. More than enough. That Netzach loves him back is, as ever, icing.

That droop, though. Fortunately, Midnight's at close enough range to catch it once he puts the butter knife on the tray, although the cause isn't entirely clear to him. (He's kind of... stupid.) He returns his last couple of grapes to the tray, leans in, strokes Netzach's hair. ]

A proper home is rare, difficult to make. It was always going to be work. I'll be there, though, and Yesod, and Mr. Chesed.

[ That's when it strikes him. Mr. Roland won't be there, will he? Netzach's mood must be something to do with that, especially given what Midnight's been told about Miss Angela and their fates as Librarians.

He tuts, continues petting Netzach, watching to see if they need to set the food aside for a bit. ]

Don't fret, love. We'll work on it, mm?

...yeah. I know we will. I think it'll be okay, it's just...

It's gonna feel emptier than it was supposed to be.

[with roland's space left vacant, with the uncertainty of his future and gebura's now that they're both gone.

he leans into midnight, but he's still eating a bit, at least, chewing idly on another bite of bread and swallowing.]

Helps if you're there sometimes, though.

Mm. I'll visit.

[ Midnight pulls Netzach in close, folding him against his side, resting his face against his head. Not exactly a kiss, just enjoying the texture and scent of his hair.

He wonders, not for the first time, what his life would look like if he didn't have such a need for distance. If he could be the sort of person Netzach could always look to... He knows Yesod's there for him, in that sense, so there isn't actually any need for concern, but the concern is always there. ]

I'm sorry. You know they wouldn't have left in such a way if they had a choice.

[ Just a gentle reminder that Netzach is cared for. Midnight will feel Miss Gebura's absence in his own way, but he knows others feel bereavement a bit more keenly, especially given their bond. ]

...yeah. They wouldn't have.

[he's probably more or less just using midnight's chest as a pillow, by now, contorting a little in his lap like a cat getting comfortable. he stops at nothing to be peak cozy.

...and maybe it's just reassuring, at the moment, because it's the first time people this far into his own sphere have gone and vanished. it's a reminder, is the thing. a bit of proof that yes, he will be touched more by disappearances, too. people will leave, and it will have nothing to do with whether they wanted it.

those people could be yesod. kaveh. midnight.]

It was like he was never here. Just- overnight. I woke up, and the apartment only had my things in it.

[ It's eerie. More death than death is, and Midnight's considered the aftermath of one's death quite a bit.

He gathers Netzach, arranges him on his lap. Netzach isn't small by any means, but he has such a small boned frame. It's too easy to hold him close like some teenaged kitten, all down and warm, sweet scents. ]

It's sudden. I do remember knocking the door to ask Mr. Welt Yang a question, only for the door to open on its own, unlocked.

[ He smiles a little into Netzach's hair. In hindsight, the uncanny way Welt's rooms had emptied in his absence is almost comical. As though the man had never existed. ]

We agreed to move in across from each other, you know. To keep an eye on each other. It's a bit strange to think about it now. To know that I'm here because of a commitment I can no longer keep.

[ ... ]

Do you remember what we spoke of at the art museum? You were a bit drunk... So was I.

Yeah, we were, huh... but I think we talked about a couple different things. Depends on which part you're talking about.

[here because of a commitment he can no longer keep...

netzach considers, as he settles into place.]

The part where you were worried about doing right by me, and caring for my heart? Or something else.

... Maybe it was sometime before that. Or after. I don't remember.

[ Midnight's grasp of the past has always been hazy, mixed with alcohol and a certain level of apathy for his own memories. He'd believe it if someone told me if the conversation he's thinking about took place entirely in a dream, or in his imagination. ~~certainly not because i cannot find the conversation they talked about this in, i'm so sorry~~ ] ]

I asked if you would be all right in the future, seeing as how it's likely I'll leave the world before you. You answered that you'd still have me.

[it was in the cursed ballpit (the second one) which is the only reason i remember what conversation it was tbh... we really did that.]

...mm. Yeah, I remember.

[not at first, he'd said, but it would be because midnight meant something to him. because the loss would hurt, because it would be one he would need to heal from.]

I'd still have your memory. You wouldn't be gone for good, as long as I remembered you. As long as anyone did. I'd have that.

[after a second:]

And after the books-- if you count those, then we both have a little bit of each other inside us. Right?

[netzach will have his memory. he'll have the remembered taste of midnight's blood in his mouth, just as midnight has his. he'll have what he drank from him then, if only metaphorically speaking.]

[ see i knew it i just straight up couldn't find it until you told me which ballpit it was... ballpit specificity

Anyway, Midnight does remember that better than I do, so he hums in agreement. That's the idea that he hopes Netzach takes with him. He doesn't have quite the same relationship with memories, but if the memory of him is enough, perhaps the same idea with Roland and Miss Gebura applies. They aren't dead yet, after all. Not necessarily. (Miss Gebura said she has a plan. Midnight believes her without question.) ]

It does. It would have, even if your gesture was possible outside the boundaries of that world. The choice you made was real, even if the consequences weren't.

[ ... Midnight's smile is very small and aimed more at the half-picked tray than at Netzach. ]

I wouldn't go as far to say you have a bit of both here... But if you count your memory of Mr. Roland and Miss Gebura in terms of years, I think they'd be more real to you than I could ever be. And if we ever have the good fortune of meeting them again, you can ask them for a bite as well.

[ This is a very, very gentle joke. He wants Netzach to at least be able to come to terms with the sudden finality of their departure, even if the time for that isn't now. ]

Geb would kill me first.

[he says, with a little huff that's almost, but not quite, a laugh. it doesn't really make it, largely because he looks a little distracted after midnight mentions the choice he made.

there was the choice to bite midnight, but that wasn't the only one, was it? the thought of it is still bitter-- allowing kaveh to volunteer himself, choosing him, knowing he'd already killed midnight once. that kaveh would never accept any other answer. he'd told netzach: choose midnight, whenever he can, and put him first; kaveh wouldn't have stood for seeing him die.

neither death was permanent. neither death will leave him, either.]

It's different, though. I actually didn't know Roland very long before we ended up here, so don't put yourself aside from them that easily.

Besides, if you want to talk in terms of years...

[a little pause, here, before he breathes out a quiet sigh.]

I think Carmen's been gone for longer than I knew her, now. That's never made her memory any less to me.

[he thinks he still loves her.]

She would have my head first for suggesting it. Plenty of time for you to abscond.

[ He ruffles Netzach's hair a little, then hugs him tightly. It's a good hug, in that Midnight loves hugs almost as much as he loves giving them. ]

Although I do like to think I'm quite memorable, I'm still honored you would mention me and Miss Carmen in the same breath. Were that I capable of putting that much good in the world... Well, someday I may.

[ He'll just have to use his time wisely. In the meantime, this is also a wise use of his time. ]

We'll fill that extra space with lovely experiences for you to keep, hmm? Perhaps that's where that happy story will start... I did promise you one, although I can't say it's altogether finished yet.

Where it'll start... didn't you already start it?

[there's that matter of fact tone once again. the one that isn't really asking; the one in which he means, the story we have is already a happier one.

he lets himself be wrapped in that hug, though, enjoying it. midnight really is good at them-- he could stay like this for a long time, probably. teaching him to get used to physical affection is, as always, a dangerous thing.]

You don't have to rush to finish it, anyway. Think I'd rather you make it a long one.

Mm.

[ Which is all he has to say for a moment. He's suddenly struck by a vision of them in the future. It's not a particularly long vision, nor is it anything Midnight would dwell on, as he often doesn't; it's simply a snapshot of them, sitting on a couch like this in the future, wearing about the same things, eating about the same foods, talking about this and that. There's no real indication that this is the future at all. It could be tomorrow.

Still, it's nice. Midnight holds onto that image for a moment, imagining it to be something far off, when they're both old and familiar with each other, then lets it go. ]

Of course. We must create enough narrative space for everyone. And there must be enough days to get to know one each other, and perhaps have a few fights, a few misunderstandings, before arriving back to each other once again.

... I think we must both consider eating a tiny bit more, though. Just to be sure we'll make it to tomorrow.

[ Morbid joke, but Midnight's trying to motivate himself, too. He snags some smoked ham from the tray and tears it apart in his fingers like an animal, feeding bits to Netzach if he so wishes to partake. ]

-we probably should.

[he accepts a bite of the meat, with a contented little hum-- but it's more for the fact that midnight initiated this. that he's motivating himself, working on it.

after he's had a few moments to let everything sink in and to think about it himself:]

...I'd like that kind of story, though. Fights and all. [that's just a part of living, and of knowing people.] I want you to be here long enough to see it through. Figure it all out with me. With us.

[he wants there to be something for them to look forward to, however short it might be.]

[ Midnight chews properly, swallows before answering, which gives him plenty of time to give Netzach a long, inquisitive look. ]

... I want that, too. Perhaps that's how the future will be.

[ ... Was he getting at something, though? ]

Not sure if much would change, necessarily... Perhaps my plans would be a bit grander, but I do try to achieve what I can.

I know. So do I.

[ever since he got a human body back, after all, he hasn't known how much time he'll get to live, or whether that dream he had of getting to just live out his life in peace would be an obtainable one.]

I don't think I'd make very grand plans myself, though. Whenever I thought about getting to live a life of my own, all I wanted was something simple. To just paint, and get into art for its own sake, and live peacefully.

...never really thought about other people being a part of it before I ended up here.

[ Midnight thinks for a moment, wiping off a microscopic bit of ham off Netzach's face, a thin excuse to touch him. ]

You've done quite a bit of painting for me at the club already, so if I asked you to do more for the sake of us making something here together... I simply don't know what we would do. I'm certainly not creative myself...

[ He hums again. ]

I suppose I've never thought of any of this in terms of leaving something behind. The very idea of it... As though the gift of having me in the world in the first place wasn't quite enough.

[ He laughs, as he always does whenever he says something mildly insane. ]

Think some people would say that in a pretty different tone, man.

[quite enough, indeed. netzach holds still, lets his face be cleaned-- really, it's not like midnight needs excuses to touch him, anymore.]

...we don't have to figure anything out right now. Having you around is enough for me to be happy with, too, but-- I do want to have something like that.

video; @The Seventh Crown of the Seventh Demon King;

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