count your blessings early

Astaroth

i think i'm the devil in disguise, here's my state of mind

Before the little vacayyyy to Torchline, Astaroth has one little thing in his mind to check in with and hopefully complete before they go — so that once they return the last little bit of the shrine can be completed. So, dressed in lighter layers but still fine and dark hued to soak up as much sun on the walk over toward the Temple, the butcher feels better mentally than he had the day prior. Still, if he glances suspiciously at any shadows from the sky, he pretends like it doesn’t matter.

Opening up the door to the temple and already meandering through toward the shrine, the butcher rolls his sleeves up — unbuttoning each cuff before he focuses on the shrine that’s nearly completed — boards stained with a touch of blood from where he and Danta had sated their bloodlust and let the creature bleed out into the soil of the shrine. “Chaaaarlie, darling, are you ready for the next step?” He hadn’t put much thought into it after the priestess had said she could plan out what to do for consecrating in a way that Dygra would approve. And so he settles back on his heels, tail swishing low, fully anticipating the short blonde to dart! into view.

give me destruction, tell me i'm scrumptious
i'm a fucking delight

Charlie

You know I talk too much
honey, come put your lips on mine & shut me up

For all the conversations that Charlie and Asta had had together about the way the world had changed from their respective whens, the priestess found herself constantly resorting to the ways of old when it came to things like worship and doing things to appease Dygra. Her first instinct when Asta had asked her to prepare a way to consecrate the shrine in a manner their goddess would approve of, was of orchestrating an orgy. Her mind swam with thoughts of velvet curtains hanging from the ceilings of the Temple, of challices of wine, bowls of fire with succulent meats roasting nearby, and in the midst of it all, a sea of bodies fumbling toward their individual climaxes, moaning out a cacophony of sound all in praise of Dygra.

Only..

As she'd gotten to know her new family better, she realize that while a good many of them would likely attend such an event, only a handful of them would be truly keen to participate. So, Charlie had gone back to the drawing board.

Indeed the blonde did dart!, appearing suddenly before the butcher. Dressed in a short black dress suitable for the heat outside as much as to show off her curves, if Asta had arrived expecting the priestess to offer him up a throng of bodies for his approval, she certainly wasn't dressed like it. "Hiiii!' Beaming up at him, her tail wagging excitedly, she nods her head. "I sure am. I think you're really going to like it." Reaching out for his hand, she wrinkles her nose affectionately. "Ready?"

Astaroth

i think i'm the devil in disguise, here's my state of mind

His grin only grows wider as the priestess appears in front of him, and he takes a moment to fully admire the choice in attire, keeping his compliments to himself while she speaks her greeting. Easily slipping his warm and large hand into hers, he gives her a gentle squeeze. “I am quite ready, darling.” He hums, flashing a somehow, impossibly brighter grin.

“You look stunning, by the way.” He lets his compliment loose as he lets the priestess guide him to wherever she’d determined would be the best for consecrating how Dygra would approve, and if his tail flicks a touch eagerly, he doesn’t pay any mind to it. But his dark eyes are bright as he takes in whatever it is Charlie has planned for them.

give me destruction, tell me i'm scrumptious
i'm a fucking delight

Charlie

You know I talk too much
honey, come put your lips on mine & shut me up

Tugging softly on his hand despite the butcher obviously knowing the way, Charlie leads him through the hallway toward the shrine. "As do you." She purrs warmly in response, eyeing the dark sheen of his shirt and the way the custom tailoring of it made him appear even taller. "I promise your clothes won't be ruined." The priestess adds, her fingers softly squeezing against Asta's. If he had any trepidation at all about what she had planned he didn't show it, but that didn't mean she wanted him to needlessly worry. Not when she had everything taken care of.

As they approached the portion of the room which held the shrine, it was blocked entirely from view by a large velvet curtain. Biting at her lower lip, Charlie beams proudly. Dropping the butcher's hand she skips forward, reaching for a braid bit of gold cord. "Once it starts, you go stand right over there." She points, though where she's actually indicating is hidden behind the curtain. "You'll know it when you see it."

So saying the priestess lowers her head with all the reverence of a ceremony about to begin and hands the butcher the cord. "Pull when ready."

Astaroth

i think i'm the devil in disguise, here's my state of mind

Beaming a too sharp grin toward the priestess as he’s guided, a soft hum of a laugh slips past his lips. “Always so very thoughtful.” As to whether or not his clothes would be ruined. That’s a good thing, considering he has been extra conscious today with his attire, and the ones he wears he certainly doesn’t want to get them ruined in any which way. So harboring none of the fear, the butcher squeezes her hand back, dark eyes taking in the trek to the shrine.

That he soon finds blocked off by a dark curtain, hidden by the dull sheen of the velvet material. Raising a dark brow toward the shorter blonde woman, he watches her as he takes in the instruction — vague as it is, and he tries to glean where she points to, only to find it also blocked off.

So he’ll take her word for it.

Snagging the golden cord that she offers him, the smile is glued to his face as he looks back to the curtain, taking a slow and deep breath to prepare himself. “Perfect.” He says softly before he gives the braided cord a tug, dropping the curtain from where it had been carefully held to block the brilliant shrine they’re still creating.

give me destruction, tell me i'm scrumptious
i'm a fucking delight

Charlie

You know I talk too much
honey, come put your lips on mine & shut me up

What is revealed is nothing short of a work of art.

If you've any familiarity with Rube Goldberg machines, what Charlie has built around the shrine will make a bit of sense, at least initially. Glass pendulums, gears, wires, levers, and all sorts of other pressure-sensitive devices have been installed around the shrine, connected to one another in wildly complex ways that aren't even worth describing. Suffice it to say, Dr. Suess would have been proud.

No sooner has the cord been pulled and the curtain drops, Asta will behold ahead of him and to his left a station that is clearly meant for making tea. The release of the curtain has set off a series of small balls that roll down glass pathways, and where in traditional rube-goldberg machines nothing more would happen to them, in Charlie's version, everything touched and used immediately shatters, thus beginning the start of a wonderful cacophony of chaos.

Should Asta follow the lines of the balls as they drop and fall along the gears and mechanisms, he'll see that eventually his tea will be heated via a small flame that's presently burning through a wire, which, once severed, will drop a spoonful of honey into a small black teacup.

For Charlie's portion, the priestess dances to the opposite side of the shrine, before shrugging her dress over her head and letting it fall to the floor. With only a pair of black lacy underwear, should the butcher look her way, he'll notice that the complex machinery that's still shattering and breaking all around them as it completes its programming will have long feathers moving up and down at the perfect height to softly tickle the priestess's bare back.

It's pure orchestrated chaos, which will have the end result of a perfectly brewed cup of tea for the butcher, and decadent back touches for the priestess.

Astaroth

i think i'm the devil in disguise, here's my state of mind

The curtain falls and he’s greeted to an absolute unit of a display — pendulums and glass balls, levers and wires. It sparks the grin on his face even more as his dark gaze follows the machine toward where the tea would be created, seeing the spark of creativity within it, and chuckling a dark laugh as the balls begin to break, shattering loudly into the air of silence made up by pendulums swinging and things maneuvering constantly.

He drifts over to the tea set, watching the heat as the wire melts and the honey is added, following it back as the rest of it continues to move — finding Charlie in nothing but dark lacy underwear with feathers gently brushing along her back, maneuvered by the very same machine that has crafted a beautiful cup of tea. “Wow, Charlie.” He breathes with another soft laugh, collecting the tea as soon as the machine has finished its movements and the feathers are the last thing to stop moving. With the cup in hand he approaches her, boots crunching over the broken glass, snagging one of the feathers to keep the soft touch stroking along her back. “You have most definitely outdone yourself.” His voice is a touch gentler, continuing the trail of feathers along her back gently.

“The tea is divine, by the way.” He says after taking a sip, quite pleased with the brilliance of it all.

give me destruction, tell me i'm scrumptious
i'm a fucking delight

Charlie

You know I talk too much
honey, come put your lips on mine & shut me up

Beaming, her tail swishing in response to the butcher's praise, the priestess glances over her shoulder, flashing him a fanged smile even as she shivers with delight at the delicate movement of the feathers upon her bare skin.

The crunch of glass beneath his boots has a dark thrill rushing up the back of Charlie's throat, though certainly, nothing compares to the guided movement of the feather now that it's within the butcher's hand. Lifting her chin and rolling her tongue against the top of her mouth in a purr, she shivers beneath his ministrations, her tail falling docilely toward the floor. "I'm glad you liked it." She hums adoringly, hazarding a glance at him over her shoulder and beaming.

"I really enjoyed the challenge, actually." Back in her when, pleasure had simply meant fucking, and chaos boiled down to death. Only in the here and now where such things weren't as openly welcomed, Charlie had been forced to think harder about the ways in which they might appease their appetites, before realizing that their base desires could still be satisfied in more subtle and sophisticated ways.

'I'm so glad you like it! I spent an afternoon last week sampling all sorts of tea. At first I couldn't always taste the flavours they said were in them, but after a few tries I found that I really could.' The one she'd chosen for Asta had been a combination of a spicy herb and dark cherry; the flavours meant to compliment one another (or so the merchant had said).

Astaroth

i think i'm the devil in disguise, here's my state of mind

He liked it very much, just as he is currently enjoying dragging the soft tip of the feather along her bare back, focusing the soft ends to brush against parts of her spine and shoulders that perhaps don’t get touched that often. And when she glances over her shoulder she’ll find him with the cup of tea in hand, the feather in the other, focusing on her pale back with a content smile lingering on his face.

It had been quite thrilling to watch the glass break once it had accomplished its task, continuing on to the next section to be done. It was absolute chaos with the end result being quite divine. As evidenced with the crunching boots over glass and the satisfied sip of tea from the little black teacup.

“I could not taste the difference either, at first. But once you do, it’s quite phenomenal how they have managed to get all these flavors in here, isn’t it?” He says a touch distractedly, though whether it’s the movement of the feather or the butcher is trying to taste the tea again, it’s hard to say. “This one is.. mm.. cherry and spices?” He asks, leaning over her slightly and in her space so she doesn’t need to move too far for him to see the confirmation or denial.

give me destruction, tell me i'm scrumptious
i'm a fucking delight

Charlie

You know I talk too much
honey, come put your lips on mine & shut me up

"Right?!" Turning, Charlie slides her arm across her breasts, a feat easily accomplished given that their proportions matched the rest of her, before tucking her fingertips beneath the opposite arm. "I've never really thought that much about what I was tasting, but I find it's really satisfying." She hums in complete agreement, flashing a bright smile up at the butcher.

As he leans down toward her the blonde lifts herself up onto her toes, closing her eyes and inhaling deeply. "I can even smell the honey." She murmurs, her nose wrinkling in confirmation that the butcher's guess had been quite correct. Of course she could also pick out the smell of heat that Asta had brought in with him from the weather outside, the subtle fragrance of him amidst the cotton of his clothing. Letting her eyes open into mischievous little slits at first, the priestess grins. "You have a good..." tongue? (well no, but also yes) nose? No, that wasn't it. What was the word she'd learned?

"—palette"

Astaroth

i think i'm the devil in disguise, here's my state of mind

Returning the feather to the little space it had sat in for the machine that Charlie had crafted, the butcher cradles the tea cup with both hands as she turns toward him and his dark gaze surveys her, that beaming smile still lingering on his face as she responds. “I have always been able to tell up to a certain point, but I find lately—” In this time and age, “things seem to taste so much more varied than they had once been.” It’s why he preferred not to eat Ancients when able to choose – not only for the obvious point that they were one of them, but they also had a taste of rock and earthiness about them that Astaroth was not a fan of in the slightest.

Attuned’s with bird shifts, though…

Remaining in Charlie’s space as she leans up to inhale the scent of the tea both in his cup and radiating from him, the butcher’s satisfied twitch of his lips betrays him when he tilts his head slightly. He smells of the iron of blood and smoke, the spiced cherry of the tea, and an underlying tone of something else that’s equally just as mysterious as it is alluring. “I have tried desperately to perfect mine.” He teases her with a wink, before drawing up back to his full height, looking back over at the machine. “And what do you prefer for your own palette, darling? Given all the new things to try.” The butcher asks, flashing her yet another too sharp and bright smile.

give me destruction, tell me i'm scrumptious
i'm a fucking delight

Charlie

You know I talk too much
honey, come put your lips on mine & shut me up

"Have you?" Charlie's blue eyes widen with awe and affection, though there's no surprise anywhere to be found on her features. It made complete sense to her that Asta had always had a more refined sense of taste, perhaps all the moreso because of what she knew about him. Like how fire added a taste to everything that was cooked and while it wasn't always bad, there was so much that was burned away. It left Charlie craving food that had been left raw more often than not, despite her love of fire.

Glancing at the feather as it was placed back, the blonde hums as she reaches out, fire licking from her fingertips and immediately engulfing all three white plumes. It was all part of her plan, and once Asta finished his tea the priestess would break the bad news to him that the little cup would need to be broken as well. For the moment, she merely tried to stand taller, her tail curling around Asta's lower calf for balance as she continued to use one harm to keep herself covered as she inhaled the unmistakable scent of him.

"I bet that's why you smell so good." She decides, slouching back onto her heels and grinning up at him. Reaching for her dress, Charlie turns her back to him as she lifts it over her head, letting it fall down around her like black water. "I've found I really like using contrasting tastes to bring each other out. I was learning about that at the tea shop, how instead of just...adding more sugar for example, if something isn't sweet enough, to instead try taking a bite of something salty and voila." Spinning, her blue eyes side, the priestess grins. "Suddenly it tastes sweeter."

Astaroth

i think i'm the devil in disguise, here's my state of mind

“I have, indeed.” He drawls a touch teasingly, though while it hadn’t surprised either of them, her awe and affection are warmly received regardless, and while he offers the fact he’d spent years perfecting his, he watches with a touch of glee to see the feathers spark into flame, bits and pieces of them floating on wind within the air like little fireflies amongst the rest of the shrine and the machine.

She anchors her tail around his leg and he remains steady as a pillar, letting her remain as tall as she could possibly be as he meets her in the middle, allowing her the moment to take in all of the scents that linger amongst the butcher’s own body. At her compliment, though, a deep hum of a laugh leaves him and he inclines his head. “Thank you.” He does try to mask the blood, but there are times that it seems to still stain him, carried with him wherever he went.

So long as everyone else found it fine and appealing, perhaps he had nothing to worry about. “Yes, precisely.” The sharp smile he flashes her is beaming once she’s turned around, broken up only by draining the rest of the cup of tea. “You can also test that with scents. If you find yourself overwhelmed, keep a space on yourself that is not scented, smell it for a few moments to reorient yourself. Then, the scents should blend less together.” So she could pick them out from a crowd, if need be.

But, with the teacup in hand empty, he wonders what the next plan is, so he slips the handle of it through his finger to let it dangle and flashes her a mischievous grin. “Is this going next?” He asks in a playful whisper, like it’s a secret between the two of them and Dygra.

give me destruction, tell me i'm scrumptious
i'm a fucking delight

Charlie

You know I talk too much
honey, come put your lips on mine & shut me up

"Oh?" Blinking thoughtfully at that, Charlie glances down at herself as if she might pick out said spot right then and there. "Before, I'd only wear any sort of perfume for rituals, but I always found that I got sick of smelling the same thing over and over again." The priestess explains, smoothing her dress. "It got to the point where even smells I adored started to smell terrible to me." Indeed, scents she'd once loved began to give her a headache, their presence on her skin overwhelming and almost nauseating. Since she'd come back the thought hadn't crossed her mind, though after having realized just how full a person could smell, Charlie began to wonder if she might curate the same sort of experience that Asta did, for those close enough to her to smell it.

Glancing at the butcher's empty cup, the smile on Charlie's lips as he balances the handle on his finger is one of unfettered delight. Reaching out to press her finger against it and give it a little shove to set it rocking back and forth, the blonde raises her dark eyebrows. Nose crinkling and tail flicking back and forth against the ground, Charlie won't have realized that she's cut the spade of her tail on one of the many broken shards of glass for a few moments, such is her delight. "Yep." She whispers, glancing up at Asta with a toothy grin.

"However you want."