Yeah. Good. He'd like that.

And obviously Azym wakes up before him again, between Zei being naturally a late sleeper and having gone to bed really late. He grabbed a local book to pass the time, last night after blitzball practice, some light fluffy fiction that is nevertheless somewhat revealing of local culture, so he resumes reading that while he waits for Zei.

He does in fact take a long time to wake up, and even after he does he takes a little bit longer to properly come to. The first thing he says when he does is a mumbly "I could get used to this."

"To what? Hot men in your bed?"

"Waking up next to someone, after... you know. Trials and tribulations."

"That's a little bit too much emotional honesty for this early in the day."

"I'm an open book, take it or leave it."

"I'm taking it, I'm taking it. Was it very trying, then, with the fayth? Or is it a secret?"

"The content of the cloister of trials is secret but that's not really the hardest part. It was the communion with Ifrit. I gotta focus on aligning my heart with the fayth, and with their desire to rid the world of Sin. And after two days ago..."

"...I had a lot of feelings about it. To put it mildly."

"...ah. Yeah." He squeezes Zei closer into a one-armed hug.

"Thankfully Ifrit is the fayth of fire and he was in full agreement with me about how I need to really destroy Sin. Being full of righteous anger was an asset, there."

"...huh. I did not realise the fayth had... different dispositions. So when you said you send Valefor had philosophical differences...?"

"Oh I meant it. Most summoners don't get every aeon that there is to get because they inevitably cannot inhabit every perspective on the problem to resonate with every fayth. I'm planning to, because I'm a completionist and I think I can inhabit every perspective but that might just be hubris."

"I am now very curious about what the fayth are like."

"Unfortunately summoners are the only ones allowed in the chamber of the fayth."

"I mean as people. I want to get to know them."

"Oh. I could probably tell you some. Aligning your heart with someone else's is a great way to get to know them."

"That might be interesting but it's just not the same as meeting them in person. I'll live.

"Do we have a time we need to get ready by?"

"Before lunch. The boat leaves for Luca tomorrow morning so we want to be at the village by tonight."

"Oh can we fit in some exposition before that, then?"

Beat. "Sure. For some reason I thought you were gonna suggest sex."

"We have all the time in the world for that but exposition can help a lot with understanding the world right now. But I could also suck your cock, I've been wanting that since we met, it is a travesty that I haven't tasted your cum yet."

Zei chokes on his spit. "This is like the third time I'm saying this but you have such a way with words."

"I know your type. You're very used to being the one in control, the confident one, the one making things happen. And you are not a strict domtop, and—"