Dinner dates for Levi

[devilsphoenix]

The other angels had fussed when Phenex revealed that they would be going out for a dinner. The angel could only imagine it was because their interests rarely focused on one, or maybe it was a fondness for the king and his vessel. Sin had been the one who dragged Phenex out to shop, gleeful and happy. Phenex saw the princess more as a sister than anything else and they had grown so close. After a full day they returned with a beautiful dress.

Between Astaroth, Azazael and Sin it felt like a whirl wind of hair and make up and dressing. However, it was Lucifer coming that made it more surreal. He gave his angelic artisan a hair piece of roses and apple blossoms from his own gardens. It meant a lot to Phenex both as a gift and a confirmation that Lucifer didn't feel like they were overstepping bounds. After all, Levi was the vessel of Lucifer's partner.

By the time they were done with everything Phenex had become nervous, simply because of everyone else. Barefoot and dressed like some princess of Greece, they waited for Levi in the open council room, more to save Levi from prying eyes of other angels than anything else.

[From here]

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[tryingitall]

Balthazar has been teasing him a little bit. Gently, with the best of intentions, but it's left Levi just a little flustered. At the same time, though, Balthazar has been helpful sorting out modern clothing for him, which is fortunate, lest Levi wind up at the villa in some sort of Edwardian outfit like a confused steampunk fanatic. What he does arrive in is a quiet, slim-fitting charcoal suit, with a tie patterned after Klimt's Tree of Life.

He's also bearing gifts. It was determined that flowers would be superfluous in light of the villa's extensive gardens, but there's no need to be excessively traditional anyway. He has a plush toy tucked under his arm, which appears to be hand-made (though probably not by him), and is designed to look like a lyrebird.

He knows how to navigate the villa in spite of rarely being there on his own, so he's right on time appearing in the council room. That's about where his brain fizzles out, though, because he was not sufficiently braced for the outfit the angel is in.

He stares for a moment, speechless, then blurts, "You're wearing a sunset."

This is the only sense he can make of the picture in front of him. The colors, the lightness of the fabric as it rests on Phenex's arms, the soft glow. And why wouldn't an angel wear a literal sunset, if it suited them?

[devilsphoenix]

Phenex probably would have appreciated an archaic suit but the clothing aren't as important for them.

"Or the sunrise." Phenex responds with happiness. They can see the mortal is stunned and walk over, nearly appearing to float in the long dress, to take his hand and place kisses on both of his cheek in greeting.

"I've always been fond of Klimt." Phenex offers to try and bring Levi around. Their wings are shifting through pale pinks and high energy yellows and oranges of happiness, mirth, and affection.

[tryingitall]

He's going out to dinner with an angel that's wearing atmospheric phenomena. The multiverse is a truly wonderful, bizarre, magical place. When Phenex takes his hand, he holds on fairly tight for a moment, as if to reassure himself they're not a mirage. Funny, though: angels are more solid than humans are, unless they don't want to be.

He gives a sheepish laugh and leans his head on the angel's shoulder for a moment, needing a chance to recover. After a few breaths, he straightens again and gently presses the plush into Phenex's arms. "I'm glad I didn't try to bring flowers; they would have been embarrassed by being shown up. You're beautiful."

[devilsphoenix]

Still holding his hand they gently touch his hair as he leans his head in for a breather. Close up the angel smells of crisp mornings at the promise of spring's new flowers, spice and the heady sweetness of fruit.

They gratefully take the plush and spend a moment observing the craftsmenship, color and texture of the fabrics. Then Phenex smiles. "We may have made each other more beautiful, but I prefer the flowers to stay where they are growing."


The mindset was one shared by many of the angels when it came to picked flowers, though they all did pick them now and then. "Fortunate that them man taking me to dinner is handsome enough to not look shabby at my side."

That was pure flirting that brought a twinkle of mischief to the angel's eyes.

[tryingitall]

The scent is exquisitely reassuring. It reminds him of breathing in the scent of Bart's pomade on the pillow after he'd left in the morning--not that the smell is all that similar, but the experience is. It's like an echo of pretty memories rippling through his mind.

He smiles back, pleased to hear he made the right choice as far as flowers. "I wondered about that too," he admits. "Like how in stories a faery cries when the prince brings her flowers because picking them killed the blossoms."

The flirting makes him laugh a little, but he offers them his arm in a mock-gallant gesture. "I don't get it, but who am I to tell the angel of beauty that I'm not good-looking enough for them? I'll take your word for it. Do you mind walking to the restaurant? It's not so far."

[devilsphoenix]

"I wouldn't cry but when your king is a creator who values life so deeply you see things differently." They explain. "If you ever want to bring me flowers, I wouldn't be upset with you."

Phenex moves over to the side and sets the plush in a space where it won't be disturbed until they return before rejoining Levi. Slipping an arm through his, Phenex grins. "I think that's an idea you share with your angel. You don't always see your own beauty."

Phenex nods to the idea of walking. It was something expected give their date was human.

[tryingitall]

"Maybe I'll paint flowers for you instead," he says, eyes shining. There are telltale differences in microexpressions and body language between him and Balthazar; his bearing is more slouched and casual, where the angel's is tall and straight, but deliberately diffident, like an ex-military man trying to mix with the civilian population. Levi's eyes look different, too. There's a softness to the blue, and sometimes an underlying sorrow, but when he smiles, there's light.

"You don't see your own beauty?" He asks, and places his free hand gently over Phenex's wrist as they walk from the room and begin to leave the villa. He touches the angel like he's half afraid he'll damage the porcelain skin, even though he knows rationally Phenex could probably pick him up with one hand and carry him around like a doll if they chose.

"You're more than beautiful, though. You're kind."

[devilsphoenix]

Phenex smiles broadly and then responds. "You should bring some of your paintings down to the gallery. I'm sure they're beautiful enough to hang in an exhibition." They're serious and know from Lucifer that this is something Levi's angelic companion wants to see happen. TO the angels, there is a significant difference between the two; human and angel. It's beyond physical behavior and melts into what they can see.

Phenex places a hand over the one now laying on their wrist. "I may be beautiful and yet I see more beauty in the world around me. All angels have heightened and very different senses than a humans. Mine are even different from other angels. I have what humans call Multiple Synesthesia. I'm not sure you'd understand what you look like to me even if I described it."

[tryingitall]

Levi smiles, eyes crinkling at the corners. "You've been talking to Balthazar. I haven't had a chance to produce enough serious work for a showing yet. I suppose some of the sketches are nice enough, I just haven't finished the paintings I'm working on yet."

"I'm looking into setting up a small glass studio, though. I always wanted to sculpt more, but I had trouble getting space and materials together. It's an option now, and there are some new techniques I'm dying to try. There's a lot that can be said with light and organic shapes and varying levels of translucency..." He trails off, excited by the thought.

He looks down at the touch to his hand. "I've heard 'synesthesia' before. I think a lot of artists have some form of it, but Multiple? Can you tell me more?"

[devilsphoenix]

"Things can be beautiful without the artist considering them serious." Phenex encourages as they walk. "When you have a handful then I will make space for you in the gallery, or maybe you and Balthazar could do a show together?"

"I look forward to seeing your pieces." The angel responds while getting caught up in the excitement.

"I can try." Phenex sighs, brows furrowing thoughtfully. "I have both projective and associative versions. Projective is when something occurs or is seen and then another sense experience is triggered. When I hear a flute's high notes everything brightens like someone has turned up the brightness and saturation and I can smell things with the different notes. Associative is when something has perceiving something with an extra sense that it isn't usually perceived with. It's a strong association like hearing someone's name and suddenly smelling their cologne but exaggerated and strange."

The angel isn't sure if that will help but it is the basics of what it is. "Sometimes it is emotions or personality traits that things have without reason. I don't have words for the experience because my senses are also heightened beyond human experience."

Phenex is trying but at least the groundwork is there for meaningful questions if Levi is still curious.

[tryingitall]

"He doesn't think he's good enough for a show," Levi says wryly. "But I'll see if I can persuade him. There's probably something deeper to be said about two individuals using the same body to create art, with such different styles."

"It's partly your fault, you know," he laughs softly. "That I want to work with glass so much all of a sudden. I started thinking I might be able to capture the colors of your wings with dichroic glass. I'm not sure I really can, but I might get closer with glass than with paint."

He sobers, listening to the explanation, and nods a little after they're finished speaking.

"I...have this thing about colors," he says. "I don't think it's synesthesia, but maybe it's something related. Everything looks different when I'm not right. I mean, when I'm depressed, or when I used to drink too much. Colors looked sick. I had a lot of trouble getting any work done after Bart died."

"The sky looks too dull and greenish...leaves look grey, buildings are kinda blurry at the edges, the sun looks mean instead of warm. It's better now, but a guy doesn't just shake everything off in a few months."

"I mean, I'm okay right now." He squeezes their hand gently. "It just sounds a little like the projective thing you said, but in a negative way."

[devilsphoenix]

"I sometimes think that is a trait the two of you share in some way." Phenex leans in and whispers. "I'll ask Lucifer to help us."

That was a way to get to Balthazar for sure. If anyone could boost his confidence it was the king. Though his next comment gets a shy laugh from the angel.

"Should I come to your glass studio and sit like you're painting me? I can listen to music so you can see all the colors." The angel is half teasing and rather serious as well. If asked they certainly would.

The angel nods to Levi's description. "That is common for depression among any being. I've not experienced loss but when Lucifer has lost it was like watching the light go out in creation. It's no different for a human or an angel, maybe it lasts longer?"

They pull their wing in, the colors fading down to the pastels of comfort. "I hope I can help. That is why Lucifer introduced us. I am not only a muse to the arts but I am the one who helps artists and discoverers who are depressed or suicidal. He was worried about you before he met you."

There's a shake of the head. "It's not always positive. Sometimes it is nightmarish how things change, but I've had billions of years to learn to accept it. I can show you some time. I can show you what the good parts look like."

[tryingitall]

"That would do it," Levi grins.

"Are you offering to be my muse, or my guardian angel?" He asks softly, gaze dropping shyly to the ground. "I...probably need that. Balthazar tries, and his friends are kind, but wanting to be better is only a step toward getting there."

Still, knowing Lucifer was concerned for him is nice, too.

Levi nods hopefully. "I'd like that. Maybe...someone being there with you can help when it gets hard? Even if it's just a human?"

[devilsphoenix]

"Being a muses isn't something you choose. It is just something that happens between an angel and someone who aligns with them. Becoming someone's muse is more like falling in love than a choice. Sometimes it is like a lightning strike and others it is slow but either way there is a connection between the desire of the artist to create and the energy of the muse."

Phenex leans in and smiles. "We can start with friends, unless asking me to dinner was intended to be an offer of more than friendship." Phenex would be pleased with either if they are honest but above all else this angel believes that is a choice for a mortal and not the angel.

"You say just a human but to us humanity is family." The angel's wing pulls in. "You are the descendants of our king in our creation. The past millennia many of the fallen have felt closer to man than Heaven. "

[tryingitall]

He continues to look shy, something soft and bittersweet in his eyes, but reaches out tentatively to stroke Phenex's hair with the backs of his fingers. "You make me feel like I belong somewhere, here, alive. That means a hell of a lot."

His smile tilts to something almost sly, though he gives a casual shrug with one shoulder. "It was intended to be an offer of more," he admits. "But I'm gonna have to go slow. I know it feels right to be with you, and honestly you're pretty fun to flirt with. I just might need a little time and patience."

"Family's kind of fraught sometimes." He touches the edge of one of the flowers in their hair lightly. "I'll do what I can, though. Promise."

[devilsphoenix]

"Then I must insist you come and visit or call me to you as much as you like." The softness and shyness simply begs for flirting. "We have a shared goal then." Phenex speaks almost against his ear. "I have an Achilles ike weakness for handsome artists."

Kissing his hair just above the ear Phenex pulls back to a normal, if case, walking distance.

"Take all the time you need. I will remain for whatever time you need."

[tryingitall]

His steps slow when Phenex moves close and murmurs against his ear. Warm breath against ticklish skin is almost unbearably sensual, and he shivers when kissed. "Umnn...that...wow."

Just completely derail his train of thought, why don't you?

It takes him a second to clear the haze from his thoughts and start walking again slowly. "You know...I knew what Balthazar was up to with my body, every time, and I never minded, but no one touched me like that for a pretty long while. It's different somehow."

[devilsphoenix]

Phenex giggles and the angelic voice sneaks through when he gets derailed and stops. It is remarkably adorable but also sad that he has gone so long isolated. There's a pause before Phenex asks playfully.

"Shall I stop or are you going to enlighten me about what else you've been missing?"

[tryingitall]

"I mean...everything?" He looks sheepish. "No, don't stop, but maybe don't blow in my ear like that when we're in the restaurant. Too much of that and I'll need a cold shower."

There's laughter in his eyes as well as a hint of sheepishness.

"This is good, though." His fingers thread through the angel's, holding their hand gently. "How do you feel about letting me get a goodnight kiss? After dinner."

Pause. "Or...any time, actually."

[devilsphoenix]

"I will save whispering in your ear for later." Phenex winks at him mischievously. Happiness and the slight almost boyish shyness is very attractive as far as this angel is concerned.

Threading their fingers a little more tightly their voice comes as a whisper, though at least not at his ear this time. "How do you feel about a kiss now?"

The question is more a rhetorical one because Phenex leans in and gently presses their lips together. Everything about Phenex is on the softer and more sensual side, including their lips which are reminiscent of flower petals warmed by the sun.

[tryingitall]

Levi hasn't felt his heart do somersaults in his chest like this since he was thirty. "That sounds like a good plan," he says, utterly failing to sound or look suave, and instead just watching Phenex's face like he's semi-mesmerized by them. "Later. When we're alone."

It's fine that the question is rhetorical, because as soon as they finish asking it, Levi leans in to capture the kiss without bothering to answer. As his eyes close, he gets a distinct, searing mental image, Bart's hand twined with his, how his own pink skin looked pressed against the other man's dark bronze, but now he imagines the soft gleam of ivory that is the angel's skin there, with them. Three palms pressed together--and maybe there's more in that than just a pretty image. Maybe a musician and a painter belong in the arms of the angel of art.

Maybe this was somehow meant to happen. Either way, the kiss feels like hope, and the angel's lips, Levi is sure, are both the softest and strongest things in the world.

[devilsphoenix]

"OH?" Phenex laughs quietly. "Are you taking me home after dinner?" The innocent flirting and teasing feels good. Phenex has always seen this as a form of art, one they didn't have the option to indulge in as much as they might like.

With his thoughts come feelings that the angel can sense, the connection between the man here and the one that is not. There's no stopping the slight ripple of sadness though if it is Levi's loss or their own sorrow for his loss, Phenex can't be sure.

They slip their arms around Levi's waist, wings flushing to bright pinks and shades of red. After lingering in the kiss for a time the lips pull away, but just enough to smile and speak. "Will this make us late to dinner?"

The pale white-blue eyes dancing with mischief but it's also a more serious question. There would be no resistance to staying here longer.