An adventuring party recruited from Osirion teleports into Azir on the 8th of Desnus. Rahadoum's recruiting contact in Osirion wrote ahead to note they were expected. Couple of guys he's known a long time - a wizard, a ranger - and a new guy, sorcerer, probably to replace the cleric they usually travel with. They spend two days in Azir getting oriented and head out to the front. The ranger wears an unusually high quality amulet of Nondetection; the sorcerer wears a headband for intelligence, which is a bit unusual as sorcerers usually don't need it to cast, but some variants do; they are otherwise unremarkable. Chaotic Good, Lawful Neutral, no reading, which could mean neutral or 'hiding it'. They work quickly and effectively, manage resources reasonably well, get recommended to higher-ups for a closer look on that account.
It's a little scary in an exhilarating way each time he notices it catching onto his mind, and has no choice but to follow that tug. Though he doesn't have very long to dwell on that when Khemet casts Waves of Ecstasy, since he is shortly afterward very distracted and not having any thoughts at all.
This is in some ways very difficult and stressful but in many other ways the most rewarding and entertaining activity ever. It turns out it is way more fun to own people if you do not own them all the time. (Also it might be more fun if they are in charge of countries themselves? What an inconveniently difficult kink to explore.)
He can think of lots to do with him. And he can have Leareth cast Lesser Restoration on both of them so they can do more.
Eventually he decides that he does not want to go right up until it's time for them to fall asleep, like this, he would rather get normal Leareth back so they can talk, so he tells Leareth to dress them both and then he makes himself stronger and scoops Leareth up and Plane Shifts them back.
Leareth obediently dresses Khemet and himself, and goes along with being scooped. Even with Lesser Restoration he's (very pleasantly) exhausted, though not sleepy yet. He thinks vaguely that he wouldn't have minded Khemet going on with this longer, but also doesn't mind stopping now, he probably would have been a bit sad if they had stopped hours ago.
He will take him back to his room in the Dome. Kiss him. "Geas was specified until 'morning', I don't know when it'll wear off exactly, but I am done. How are you doing?"
Leareth blinks at him, still kind of dazed, and then makes an effort to reassemble his attention toward something closer to his usual state. "...Really good. That was wonderful. Somehow tiring and restful at the same time, which is confusing. How are you?"
"Happy." He looks it. "I think next time I will be able to read you better and will not have to keep occasionally prodding you to make words at me, sorry about that. I thought about reading your mind but I decided that if I accidentally learned something about Cheliax while I had stolen you away to my demiplane and made you incapable of resisting my spells and read your mind Aroden would have such justified disgruntlement and that would be so awkward."
"A good call. He would be so upset and also confused; I am trying to picture his face if I had to confess that to him. Somehow I suspect he is not into Parmida kidnapping him to demiplanes where he cannot do magic. Or the other way round."
Leareth flops onto Khemet, contentedly. "I wonder why it was so hard to make words. I do not normally have any difficulty with that."
Petpet. "I have had other people report this experience though I have not had it myself. Maybe the words center is near the decisions center and so they stop functioning together."
"I think I probably have to be in a rather specific mood, to enjoy being unable to make any decisions, but - wow, when that is what I want, it is very enjoyable and relaxing." Snuggle. "I love you."
Leareth is quiet for a while, just being right where he is. He feels a lot readier to go back to the final day of hectic wedding planning, like he's managed to relax enough to sink into some kind of ground state that he can stay anchored on, but he's also not impatient about it. The plans that need him steering them can wait another few hours.
"You would like it if there were a next time?" he says eventually. "When we had talked about doing this before, you had not been sure you would want to do it more than once."
"Oh, this I'll do as often as you want it. - within reason. I'm a married man. The other way around, we can try once, because I do not know if I will like that."
"Fair enough. It seems - like you were doing a difficult thing, making sure that I was having a good time, and I think you are better at reading me than I am at reading you."
"Maybe I can do something about the state secrets in advance so you can read my mind and not have to worry about that part. But it's not just that part, it's -" Shrug. "Maybe I am just too accustomed to absolute power and will find it's actually delightful not to have it."
"I often have the impression that you find it tiresome having absolute power all of the time, even if it is very useful for a wide range of purposes."
"I would like it if I were closer to the thing advertised, either because the advertising was more accurate or because I could hold enough of Abadar in my head to pull it off. I would like it if there were fewer protocols in the contexts where they're awkward, mostly internationally. I liked the fighting, a lot, that kind of not having absolute power is fun..."
"That was delightful," Leareth agrees. "I expect I will nearly always be up for doing that when you are interested, even if I only sometimes want the thing we did tonight."
"Well, soon you will have a wife to keep happy. But when you do not, you are welcome here."
At least he only has one wife to keep happy, and also is capable of sexual attraction to her. Leareth doesn't say that out loud, it seems unhelpful.
"I am looking forward to showing her around Aktun," he says instead. "And - being able to walk around near other people and not fear much for either of our safety. Arguably staying there is a ridiculous thing to spend money on, but - it will make me very happy, and hopefully her as well."
"Mmm." Snuggle.
If Khemet doesn't say anything else then Leareth will start drifting sleep-ward after a few minutes.
Snuggling to sleep is good.
In the morning he will have to go let Leareth get back to his last-minute wedding preparations.
"I will see you there in a day." Leareth kisses Khemet goodbye, and checks with mage-sight that he's no longer under a geas.
He Gates back to the palace in Egorian, hopefully in time to have breakfast with Carissa before they dive into today's task-list.