Malachi rang the doorbell to announce his arrival before pushing the door open. He still felt a little awkward married to the five men, especially because one didn’t talk to him- didn’t talk to anyone but Leo really- and one was incredibly formal around him. But then, Dimitri seemed to be a pretty serious, formal person all the time.

He stepped into the grand entryway and was instantly hit by a golden blur. He laughed and hugged Leo, lifting the small man up and kissing his cheek, letting a large hand drift along his velvety ears.

Leo giggled and kissed him. "Missed you."

Malachi grinned. "Ditto."

A slender hand grabbed his. He turned and smiled at Holly. He smiled back, warm blue eyes unusually cautious. He ignored Leo who was still clinging to Malachi and kissed him chastely on his lips, also odd.

Malachi frowned and cuddled Leo close while freeing an arm to wrap around Holly‘s hips. "What’s the matter?"

Holly opened his mouth, but it was Rylan’s voice that answered. "Dimitri got drunk and got married. Again."

Malachi glanced up, eyes widening. Rylan was leaning against the stair rail, long blonde hair tied back tightly, eyes far too serious for a joke. Holly was tense again him as well and Leo’s childish happiness had dissolved.

Malachi gently slid the phooka down, setting him on the floor. He cuddled him close on his free side. "To who?"

Holly shrugged, burying his face in Malachi’s shoulder. Malachi rubbed his back. It would be hard on Holly. Those two seemed to be pretty close.

Rylan shrugged and walked over, pecking Malachi on the cheek and gently tugging Leo to cuddle against him so Malachi could cradle Holly in his arms.

"Some guy none of us know. He picked him up at a bar."

All Malachi could do was blink. "Dimitri was at a bar?"

Rylan grinned at him over the heads of their shorter husbands. But his voice came out serious. "Yes, he was at a bar. And got drunk. And then married. To a slut too- dyed hair, lots of piercings."

Malachi kissed Holly’s violently red hair, thinking and ignoring the shot. He had lots of piercings and his hair was bleached bone white, but he knew Rylan didn’t mean he was a slut. He was just pissed. "You met him?"

Rylan nodded. "He brought him back here. It was the smart thing to do." His voice was grudging when he said that. He caught Malachi’s questioning look. "Remember all the paperwork you had to fill out when we got married?"

Malachi nodded. It had been a bitch, but worth it.

"A lot of that was information about you, but also a lot of it was in case of divorce or a death or… whatever. Almost all of it was unnecessary for the marriage but made things easier now and in the future. I guess when you’re smashed, you don’t worry about shit like that. Ezra," he spat the name out like it was something dirty. "Has to go through a lot of the paperwork now to get the divorce."

Malachi sighed. "Dimitri’s getting the divorce though. Everyone makes mistakes. Is he here?"

Holly’s hands drifted around Malachi’s waist and clenched, holding him close. Rylan’s answer was no surprise. "No."

Leo turned in the blonde’s arms and looked up at Malachi. "Rylan tried to strangle him. The slut, I mean. Not Dimitri." He sounded smug.

"Dimitri went to put him up in a hotel the day before yesterday. He hasn’t come back yet."

Malachi felt his eyebrows going up. Nonetheless, he kept petting Holly’s thick curling hair and said, "He’s probably just making sure the paperwork is getting filled out. There was a lot of it if I remember right and it was pretty complicated."

Holly smiled up at him. Rylan whispered something to Leo who kissed him and darted away, going up the stairs to the attic. He was taking this fairly well, considering, but then, Leo had nearly no temper to speak of and didn‘t get depressed easily.

Rylan stepped forward, sandwiching Holly between him and Malachi, holding him close. "Hey, honey, go upstairs, ‘kay? I’ll get you some cocoa."

Holly nodded and stayed pressed between them for a moment longer before slipping out and heading to his room.

Rylan took his vacated place in Malachi’s arms, yanking the slightly taller man down by his long white dreads to kiss him. Malachi happily obliged, enjoying Rylan’s grip on his hair and demanding mouth. Most men were so damn submissive around him. Rylan was the one exception thus far. And Holly, but he had to be in the mood, which was rare.

"What’s up?" he asked when the blonde fae finally pulled away.

Rylan looked up at him. "We both know Dimitri doesn’t need to disappear for two days. Either he’s hurt or he’s run off with the kid."

"Rylan, I’m sure it’s fine. He’s probably just avoiding Holly. I take it they had a fight?"

Rylan nodded. "Which is why Holly’s so miserable. If I go after him, I’ll just deck him for doing that to Holly. Holly’s in no state to chase after him and Leo’s useless for stuff like this." A fond smile crossed his lips, easing the malice.

"So I go."

Rylan shrugged. "No fist fights or waterworks and there will be results. I found the hotel he put the bar slut up in."

Malachi sighed and let go. "Tell me."

--

Malachi smoothed back his dreads, knowing the ponytail looked messy and that would look like his usual punked-out self no matter what he did, but unable to help the movement.

He tapped his tongue piercing against his teeth, an old nervous habit he couldn’t break, and then knocked on the door.

When there was no response, he knocked again, louder this time. There was a muffled groan from inside, a spat curse, and then the door was flung open, revealing a person that was very much not Dimitri. Nor was it someone Malachi would choose for the reserved fae. Slender and probably vaguely feminine looking if he was clothed in more than a sheet that draped over his lower body like a skirt. But that was what he was wearing and it left the very sharp lines of his body evident, from the sharp shoulders, to the definitely flat chest, to the lightly muscled stomach, to the sharp bones of his hips. He looked like he didn’t eat enough if the ribs showing and wiry muscles were any indication, but the expression on his face eliminated any semblance of delicacy.

He looked pissed, black eyes narrowed, eyebrows lowered, lips pressed together. His hair - black, blue, green, and every color in between, all carefully streaked in separate lines so there was no blending- was in disarray, sticking in odd directions and clinging to his pale, pale skin.

"What?" he snapped.

Malachi just continued to study him. One eyebrow was pierced twice, close together, and his lip was pierced to one side. Both ears were pierced several times as well as one nipple. He really didn’t look like anything Dimitri would like. Holly, and Leo for that matter, were both super sweet, pretty, and natural. Neither had the sharp-edged industrial look this guy did.

His dark eyes narrowed further and he took a step back, slamming the door. It got as far as Malachi’s foot.

"Hi," he said, grinning and shoving the door back open, ripping it out of the pale man’s hands. "I’m Malachi. I don’t suppose you’ve seen Dimitri?"

The guy tilted his head to the side, anger dissipating, not seeming at all perturbed. He leaned against the doorjamb, filling the entrance. "Malachi," he guessed. "I thought you would be taller."

Malachi just looked at him.

"And paler for some reason. You look sort of Filipino or something."

Malachi sighed. "Chinese, African, Irish."

"Sexy."

"Is Dimitri here?"

The man shrugged. "Just giving him time to get dressed."

Dimitri appeared then, towering over a foot above the pale human. For once, Malachi didn’t take a moment to admire him, too shocked. The usually put-together man looked sloppy- well, like a normal person when he had just rolled out of bed. His knee-length back hair was heavily tousled, more so than the man who had opened the door. His clothes were dishevelled- his shirt wrinkled, and his pants unbuttoned, showing a triangle of dark skin.

"Malachi." His voice was a little breathless.

"Dimitri." Malachi’s voice was cold.

Dimitri’s brilliant lavender eyes, so like amethyst jewels, widened a tad. "This- this is Ezra."

The slender brunette grinned and waved.

Malachi avoided his eyes, carefully looking everywhere but the two. The bed was as mussed as Dimitri was, the sheets tangled, blankets tossed to the side. Clothes were strewn everywhere and he caught sight of one of Dimitri’s usual dark silk button-ups on the lamp. That explained why the t-shirt was so tight- it wasn’t his. Several empty bottles were on the table, scattered, different labels on every one.

Malachi finally looked back at the pair. Ezra was leaning against the doorway, draped in nothing but the sheet. Dimitri was behind him, sort of hunched into himself looking down.

Ezra raised a curved eyebrow at him. "You know, Dimitri said you were the calm one of the bunch."

Malachi glared. "Excuse me if I don’t take kindly to sluts sleeping with my husband."

Ezra raised an eyebrow. "From what it sounds like, you certainly aren’t doing it. So why are you pissed?"

"Ezra…" Dimitri said softly, lifting a hand to rest on his bare shoulder. "D-"

"Don’t touch him," snapped Malachi.

Dimitri pulled his hand back quickly. His lilac eyes were even wider now. "I am sure whatever problem there is-"

"The problem is that you’re fucking some guy you’ve known for two days!"

Dimitri just blinked at him, while Ezra grinned. He nudged the dark man behind him. "He’s jealous." He didn’t even try to keep his voice down.

Just like Malachi didn’t try to deny it. "Of course I’m fucking jealous! He’s known you for days and it looks like you’ve been going at it like rabbits! I’ve known him for over a year and I don’t get to touch!"

Ezra grinned. "Aw, that’s sweet." He glanced back at Dimitri whose eyes were showing white around the irises. "Now kiss and make up."

Dimitri’s eyes snapped into a glare that he turned on both men. "Please do not joke."

Malachi crossed his arms, glaring back.

Ezra glanced between them before shrugging. "Well, whatever man. I’m getting dressed." He turned and grabbed a pair of jeans before sliding into the bathroom. The sound of water running and much shuffling sounded.

Malachi stayed tense and silent as Dimitri shifted from one foot to the other for a moment before beginning to move around the room, straightening things out, carefully not looking at Malachi.

As the empty bottles one by one clattered into the too small wastebasket, Malachi asked, "Is that all it would take for you to relax? A couple drinks?"

Dimitri ignored the words.

Malachi continued on, anger and jealousy making him reckless. "If I had gotten you drunk you would have tumbled into my bed like a-"

Dimitri turned on him, lavender eyes fierce. "Do not finish that sentence. I am not a whore, a slut, a tramp, or anything else you could possibly end with. We were drunk and Ezra is…"

"A stranger," Malachi said bitterly. "You’d rather do a stranger than me."

"Well, it’s certainly easier," said Ezra poking his head out of the bathroom. "Easier to talk to, easier to fuck. There’s no chance of fucking things up with me because there’s nothing to fuck up. And it doesn’t matter if he weirds me out, or disappoints me, or alienates me because I’m not important. Like therapy." He pulled his head back into the bathroom.

"Well we don’t have anything to fuck up either."

"You’re married," called Ezra.

"So are you!"

"We’re getting divorced though. Divorce fixes everything marriage ruins. Besides, you were in almost like an arranged marriage or something. Who found you? Rylan? Holly? Leo? Whoever it was, wasn’t Dimitri; he just ended up with you."

Dimitri was studiously ignoring both of them and slid into the bathroom when Ezra got out and Malachi slowly, carefully counted to ten. And then twenty. He blew out his breath. "Fair enough," he said sullenly, pushing the envy down. The green eyed monster was not pretty, or attractive, or sweet.

Ezra blinked at him. "That’s it."

"He does not have much of a temper. I was rather surprised by his outburst," Dimitri said. "What are you doing here?"

So they were going to ignore his little outburst. That actually worked okay for him except for the ignored confession bit. He had admitted he liked Dimitri- well, actually that he wanted to have sex with Dimitri, but for Malachi, it was the same thing. He didn’t want to have sex with people he didn’t like.

Dimitri stepped out of the bathroom, once again carefully coifed and dressed, almost as immaculate as he usually was. But, his silk shirt was wrinkled and there was something shining from his ear.

"Since when do you have an earring?"

Dimitri’s hand rose partway to his ear. He stopped it before it reached. "I have no idea," he said dryly. "I just noticed."

"He got it two days ago, after Rylan nearly hit him," Ezra said cheerfully. "He was pretty drunk."

"Rylan did what?"

Ezra answered, cutting off Dimitri before he could answer for himself. "I didn’t see much, but Rylan had him pinned against the wall and his arm was pulled back. Like this." He demonstrated. It was pretty obvious what the continuation of the action would have resulted in.

Malachi stayed silent, eyes widening. "Wow."

Ezra nodded. "That’s what I said."

"That- that doesn’t sound much like Rylan…"

"It is not," Dimitri cut in, sounding more than a little irritated. "I had just brought home a stranger from a bar for the second time in only a few years. He was angry. Rightfully so."

Ezra shrugged. "He just seems like an angry person to me. He tried to strangle me, you know."

Malachi ignored him. "Holly’s pretty upset."

Guilt flashed across Dimtri’s face. "We are getting divorced."

Malachi shook his head. "I dunno if he’s still angry about the marriage. He was sad earlier. About the fact that you disappeared." He snorted. "He’s probably going to get angry again when he hears what you’ve been doing for two days."

Dimitri looked down, hands clasping in front of him.

Malachi softened. "I don’t need to tell him. I won’t," he hurriedly tacked on.

Dimitri nodded, still staring at the ground. "That would be appreciated."

Ezra crossed his arms, black eyes narrowed. "Great, now both of you go. Have fun apologizing for disappearing."

Dimitri nodded, resolve stiffening his spine and straightening his shoulders, returning him to the man he usually was.

Malachi followed him out. The hotel door slammed shut behind them.

---

Ezra frowned at the door and the two men that had left. Dimitri was ashamed of disappearing for two days. Not necessarily of just disappearing or the whole running from his husband thing, but ashamed of what he had been doing. Ezra. He was ashamed of doing Ezra.

Ezra glared, pushing his odd colored hair out of his face. He hated guys like that. That was how Rick had been- ashamed except when in bed in private. Jerks, all of them.

He glanced out the window. It was already late afternoon, plenty late enough to get to a club, get drunk, and get laid. Sleeping with one guy for any amount of time made him tetchy; it had for years.

He wandered into the bathroom and found his t-shit- the one Dimitri had been wearing. It was still cleaner than his other one, the one he had been wearing he had met Dimitri.

He pulled the black fabric over his head and smoothed it into place. He exchanged the jeans he had been bought for his - they were a lot tighter. And that was it. He sighed and wished for his bag back as he smoothed his hair as best he could with his fingers. Everything he owned had been in that bag - wallet with ID and a little money, a few changes of clothes, make-up, jewelry, condoms, and a toothbrush. He had lived out of that bag for the past year and it had been fine, but he did need it.

He sighed. He needed a job. He might be able to guilt Dimitri into giving him enough money for clothes and then he could go turn into applications. He had a hell of a resume and a whole lot of sparkling references. He had never been fired in his life- he was always a victim of "budget cuts." Always. He knew why and his employers knew why, but they couldn’t tell why because discriminating was illegal.

He pushed that out of his mind and pushed out of the room, shoving the room key into his pocket.

--

The ride back to their house was silent. Dimitri kept his hands still and loose in his lap. His back was very straight and his shoulders were square, but he was tense and fighting not to fidget. Malachi was silent beside him. Dimitri was carefully ignoring him. He had all but said he wanted Dimitri in his bed. It was making him… very uneasy.

But Malachi had made no move and slowly, Dimitri began to relax. "How’s Holly?" he finally asked, voice soft.

"Depressed," he said without turning. "Guilty. What did you two fight about?"

Dimitri really didn’t want to answer. Him and Malachi were not friends. They were not close, they did not talk. They nodded at each other in the hall and exchanged empty pleasantries. But Malachi had agreed to cover for his two days of debauchery and Dimitri owed him for that at least. Holly didn’t need more dumped on him.

"He told me I was being cold," Dimitri said.

"Oh."

"It really wasn’t an argument. He yelled and stormed out. I left and got drunk."

Malachi stayed silent as Dimitri stared out the window. "He’s right. I am cold."

A hand gently rested on his shoulder. Dimitri turned towards him, knowing his eyes were wide and more than a touch vulnerable. He couldn’t help it. Holly was one of the most important people in the world to him and he thought he was cold.

Malachi recognized whatever was in his eyes. The hand on his shoulder moved and Malachi enveloped the slender man in his arms, pulling him close as Dimitri began to shake and then cry softly, no sign of it other than the tears and the shaking.

Malachi held him gently until he was able to calm down. He shouldn’t be stressed, not after two days of sex, alcohol, and what basically amounted to therapy. But he was. He had problems with his marriage and with Holly especially. He was jealous. Not of Leo, he had been with Giovanni for years and Rylan first. But Holly…. Him and Dimitri had been basically monogamous for a year and a half. Then Dimitri had done the right thing and lost that. Holly had hit it off with Rylan and now Malachi.

He carefully wiped the tears away and pulled away from Malachi, sitting back in his seat and smoothing out his shirt.

Malachi turned towards the front again and a moment later, Dimitri followed suit, not willing to talk about it, happy Malachi didn’t seem to want to prod.

The taxi pulled to a stop and Dimitri pulled his wallet out and paid the cabbie. Malachi offered him a hand out. Dimitri blinked at it, surprised.

The hand began to pull away, but Dimitri quickly reached out and grabbed it.

Malachi smiled at him, dimples flashing. He was a steadying hand as Dimitri stepped out and he interlaced their fingers as soon as Dimitri was on his feet. It was surprisingly nice and Dimitri actually leaned closer to him. When they reached the door, Dimitri leaned over and pecked the slightly shorter man on the cheek. "Thanks," he muttered, before pulling his hand away, glad his skin was so dark. It hid the blush.

He opened the door, Malachi following a moment later. The foyer was empty, But Dimitri had assumed it would be and went up one of the staircases to Holly’s room. He tapped twice on the door and held still.

Rylan opened the door, unconcerned with his nudity. His blue eyes instantly snapped into a glare.

Dimitri actually shrunk back and regretted it the moment after, but the morning had been hard and he was nervous about Holly and Malachi now and he was remembering nearly getting hit.

Shock flashed across Rylan’s face. He stared at Dimitri for a moment then silently moved to the side, allowing the tall dark fae to pass.

Dimitri stepped in, wary of the blonde, but he was quickly distracted as his eyes went straight to Holly. The elemental was sprawled on the bed and as naked as Rylan, bright red curls splayed on the dark sheets. His blue eyes widened when he saw Dimitri and he bounded off the bed and straight into his arms.

Dimitri hugged him tight. The click of the door signaled Rylan’s departure and that was the last of Dimitri’s control. He buried his face in Holly’s curls and murmured endearments and comforting nonsense as Holly clung to him. His hands gently massaged Holly’s bare back and he just enjoyed having the man close to him again after several days. He smelled like cinnamon and his hair and skin were soft against Dimitri.

"I’m sorry," Holly said, finally pulling away and looking up at Dimitri. His blue eyes were wide, filled with tears.

Dimitri pulled him close again, talking into his hair. "I’m sorry. You shouldn’t be; you were right."

Holly yanked away again, grabbing Dimitri’s shoulders. "No, I wasn’t. You aren’t cold, you just don’t… show things as well as Rylan and Malachi. I knew that." Holly shivered and curled back in Dimitri’s arms. "I missed you."

"I love you," Dimitri said softly. "Sorry."

Holly clung to him silently and turned his face up for a kiss. It started chaste and gentle and Dimitri intended for it to stay that way, but Holly’s lips parted and his arms snake around Dimitri’s neck; the kiss didn’t stay chaste.

--

Holly smirked down at him as he slid off the bed. "Missed you."

Dimitri mustered up a drowsy smile.

Holly bounded off of him, wiggling his hips slightly when he slid to the ground. Dimitri sighed as he slipped free, suddenly feeling cold at losing Holly’s overwhelming heat. His body ran several degrees above average and the heat was amazing.

Holly grinned and grabbed a robe from his closet. "I’m going to go find Malachi! Love you." He bounced over and pecked Dimitri’s cheek.

Dimitri sighed as the red head shut the door behind him, leaving him alone. He sighed as he stood. Only Holly could make him feel utterly loved and then like a cheap whore in a matter of minutes.

He sighed and untangled the band from the end of his hair, finger combing the braid loose, letting the heavy waves hang. He unbuttoned and pulled off the shirt and finally allowed his pants to fall. Holly had done nothing but open the slacks and pull the briefs he was wearing underneath low enough to free him.

He reached for the shower door.

Bang!

The bathroom door slammed open. Dimitri spun around and came face to face with Rylan.

He took an involuntary step back, into the glass door.

Rylan just glared at him, blue eyes angry.

"I’m supposed to apologize to you."

Dimitri stared at him, wide-eyed, and pressed himself into the door, wishing for an escape route or at least a pair of pants.

"I’m sorry I slammed you into a wall and almost- for fuck’s sake, I’m not going to attack you!"

Dimitri just stayed pressed against the shower door.

Rylan leaned forward and very deliberately sniffed him once. "Oh," he said. He grabbed the towel from the rack and tossed it at Dimitri. "You have modesty issues, you know that?" he said as Dimitri wrapped the oversized towel around himself. It covered him from chest to knees. "Anyways, I’m sorry I almost hit you, it won’t happen again."

Dimitri just nodded, clutching at the towel.

Rylan snorted. "Did you at least get the slut to start the paperwork?"

Dimitri ducked his head.

Rylan sighed gustily. "Fine. I’ll go get it and bring it to him."

Dimitri glanced up in surprise. The straining self-control that wasn’t in his voice was obvious on his face.

"Thank you," Dimitri said softly. He wasn’t sure if it was for dealing with Ezra or for not cussing him out.

Either way, Rylan nodded and turned sharply on his heel, stalking out and once again leaving Dimitri alone.

The dark fae sighed in relief and stepped into the shower.

---

Ezra blinked and tried to focus on the man in front of him. He couldn’t. He really needed to eat. But he had no money. Life was a bitch.

He smiled up at the man as the guy laughed and ran a hand through his hair.

Ezra frowned and grabbed his hand. There was a tan-line on his ring finger. He stifled a groan and pulled away, making some lame excuse and slipping away. His life would be so much simpler if he didn’t go home with married men, cheating or polygamous.

He wandered back to the bar, too dizzy and tired to dance. He hadn’t eaten for about two days. He really needed some food…

The naga bartender glanced at him and then did a double take. He gestured at Ezra to lean forward. "Hey, I think I found your bag. Hold on."

Ezra blinked and nodded. If it really was his bag, he was in luck. He pushed the hope down. If it wasn’t….

But it was. When the naga bartender re-emerged from the backroom with Ezra’s black messenger bag with its spray painted blue peace sign.

The bartender pulled out the wallet and double checked the ID before handing it over.

"Thanks!" yelled Ezra over the music.

The bartender nodded. "Hey, I get off in an hour. Want to dance when I do?"

Ezra grinned and nodded. The man was pretty cute and he had gotten him his bag back.

The man grinned at him and slid off to help another customer. Ezra checked the wallet. There was still money in it. He strode out of the club, destination and time constraint in mind. There was a fast food joint a couple blocks from the club. The food was gross and greasy and there wasn’t a lot that didn’t have meat in it, but it was cheap and he really desperately needed food.

His head hurt and the world was spinning. His blood was rushing, his pulse pounding in his ears, and he felt over heated… Actually, that was odd. He had been hungry before. He never felt fevered or like this…

"Oh shit," he mumbled, turning around sharply and beginning to hurry towards the opposite side of town. He didn’t have enough money for a cab, but he needed to get to the hospital now.

The world tilted to the side and he fell hard, knees hitting the concrete and then his torso and face. He stared out, the drab buildings and bright neon lights spinning together in a Technicolor blur. He couldn’t move, couldn’t breathe. The lights began to dim and then everything faded to black.

---

Rylan knocked on the door. He growled slightly when there was no answer and no movement from inside. Well, he could go down to the lobby and demand a key or break in… He broke in. No one was inside. A growl trickled from his lips. He sniffed and wrinkled his nose, bringing a hand up to plug it. Nothing but booze, sex, and the smell of the two men who had been inhabiting it. He sighed and dropped down on the desk chair, propping his feet up on the desk.

He would wait. The little slut would have to come back eventually.