Tobias' own lanky figure lay sprawled out across his favoured rug upon the floor of Tetradore's room. That plastic toy cow, held firmly in one hand, was colidded firmly with that little yellow toy Maserati in the other. The boy seeming to take some measure of delight in this falsified crash of sorts. The lanky deviant attempting some combination of sounds bizarrely reminiscent of both a screeching car and a mooing cow. As if this, somehow, improved the game. His head rolled easily backward then, lashings of black hair tumbling from his gaze as he eyed that bathroom, the sound of the running water from the shower prompting that scowl onto his features. Why Tetradore so insisted on showering after those fights he hardly knew. Tobias rubbing at his own black eye- the result of their latest victory in the final round of that doubles tournament tonight. The sooner his chosen-Alpha finished his own shower the sooner he was likely to attempt to force Tobias to do the same, that cunning creature so having been ordered to wait on that rug, Tobias unwilling to disobey that order and yet his mind had already begun to attempt to work out just how he might escape Tetradore's desire to have him stand beneath that water for any length of time.

The sudden sound of that water shutting off readily saw the deviant sit upright once more, those dark eyes flicking from the bathroom door, to the bedroom at large and back again. Whatever thoughts had so begun to formulate within his mind abruptly cut short by the sudden scent of....someone else. A scent he knew and yet, one he had failed to scent for weeks. The abrupt appearance of another man on the far side of that room saw his own gaze suddenly widen, that growl of sorts rising within his throat, that protectiveness and simple desire to guard that space he deemed Tetradore's and his own alone readily prompting that aggression as the boy near visibly bristled. What? You do not remember me, Tobias? You wound me Mon Anime- but see what I brought for you? A gift.

The idea of a gift, it seemed, was enough to prompt that curiosity in the lanky deviant, his own head tilted slightly as the man his mind so readily begun to recognise as 'Tetra's Friend' wandered towards him, holding out a large rubber cube of sorts. Tobias reached to take it, the boy turning it over within his hands to eye several small holes cut within that rubber surface. The scent of something decidedly sweet clear to him and yet....whatever that treat was appeared to be.....stuck....in the cube. His hands firmly shook that toy, those candies rolling around inside and yet they failed to fall out, that surprise clear upon his features as he glanced once more towards the other man. Those dark eyes meeting the silver of the French fellows own.

"It is...stuck?"

The other man simply nodded. It is a puzzle, you are not allowed to use your teeth and you are not allowed to break it, you have to get the candy out another way. It is a puzzle for the cleverest people. Do you think you could do it? That ready challenge saw his own eyes narrow slightly, as if anticipating some sort of trick and yet the deviant so relished in such games as this with clear goals and clear rewards, his head suddenly nodded as the bathroom door opened to let the now fully dressed Tetradore step into that room. Tobias- remaining on that mat still- promptly turned towards his closest companion then, holding up what was quite clearly a dog kong toy with clear pride.

"Tetra's...friend gave me.....a puzzle....gift. It has....candy...in it."

Those stuttered words gave way to the clear pleasure all the same. Tobias proceeding to scoop up that rug in his free hand (the boy still assured he was not supposed to leave it) before carrying it out of the room and into his own to work on that 'puzzle toy' he had been gifted. Matteo merely watching the boy go before his silvered gaze returned to Aiden now. It had been....an age since he had last seen the boy. To long. Yet, Risque, for a time, had disappeared and Aiden had not needed him so much as he had once done, at least, not for those few months. Matteo having been determined to allow the young man to simply enjoy...living, in a sense. Without those ties to his past. Still, the return of Risque had prompted the return of the Frenchman in equal measure and yet, even for all the horror that vampiric woman so represented he could not find it within himself to begrudge that chance to see that green-eyed man again.

"Hey, Scoundrel."

It was a childish nickname, one Aiden had long since outgrown and yet those words held nothing save for affection all at once as Matteo so effortlessly crossed that room to extend his hand towards the other man, tugging Tet softly against him in that light version of a hug of sorts. The age-old Fae remembering well his companions disdain for those more physical gestures of affection. That simper found his lips all the same as he stepped back, releasing Aiden's hand in turn. He had watched this boy all his life and yet, somehow, along the way- he had stopped being a boy and become a man. He looked well. Mostly. Matteo's gaze focusing upon that single gash to the man's arm, a result of the nights fighting it seemed and one not yet quite healed. The hot water from the shower perhaps prompting it to bled. The Fae reaching effortless forward to run a single finger along that wounded flesh- healing in the wake of that touch and returning that tanned skin to its regular flawlessness.

"One day, Aidun, I will find you not bleeding."

That tease was light, effortless, his accented tones affording the man's name that curious punctuation and yet- though his own english had long since become good enough to pronounce his companions name correctly- that memory of a child so attempting to force him to say it over and over readily saw that accent remain. His hand swept easily across his own jeans then, wiping that spattering of blood aside as he had done a thousand times before. After all, how often had he found Aiden bleeding in all the years he had known him? Perhaps almost as often as he had found him crying. At least in those early years when the boy used to sob into his shirt until there were simply no more tears left within him. The older he had gotten the less he had cried and perhaps the less he had needed Matteo as a parent- and more as a confidente and later a friend. He had seen that boy become a man- one more courageous than nearly any he knew even if he hardly dared mention it. Aiden never one to desire praise in any sense and yet if any being had ever deserved all the goodness the world had to offer it was surely the one before him. How twisted Fate could be. How much he loathed it at times and the dice he too had been thrown in this world. So destined to watch over others, to know of their fates without truly being permitted to change them without consequence. How many nights had his own heart broken over and over for the boy? Even if he had tried to never let it show. God, he was becoming soft in his old age.

"I brought you something."

He offered simply. Not a flicker of those emotions tainting his features beyond that simple affection and clear pleasure he took from the WerePanthers company. Matteo reaching then to hand Aiden that cardboard box he had placed upon the bed and out of sight of Tobias to prevent that other man so attempting to consume its contents. Tobias was a truly curious being and yet- he was good for Aiden. They needed one another and for the company the Leopard afforded the Panther the Frenchman found himself eternally grateful. His gaze lingered upon that box as Tetradore opened it to reveal near countless packets of candy and french chocolates, a collection of Aiden's favourites sourced from all over France and Europe itself. Matteo merely allowing one eye to rise before the man abruptly disappeared, reappearing in that chair beside the fireplace, one leg folding over the other as his feet balanced on that worn coffee table in a clear manner of relaxation- his arms folding behind his head.

"There is some Batna in the box as well, Mon Amie- two packets- so you can share with your friend if you care too. You favoured them when you were sixteen. I would hide the box though, he will eat most of it if he finds it."

That grin found his lips once more, Matteo clearly having made himself comfortable within that chair as he waited for Aiden to join him. Just how old Tetradore was now apparently having skipped the man's notice. Time, after all, so held a distinctly different meaning for the French Fae.

"Tell me you have something to drink on this ship of yours? I have been sober for at least three days and reality is starting to afflict me again. I like this room though, it suits you."

It was barely 1am and as far as Matteo was concerned, that night was still young.

madness, as you know, is like gravity: all it takes is a little push