Frank pulled on some sweatpants and a sweater before he limped across to the other side of the house at a faster pace than necessary, his foot protesting with every determined step, the pain only fueling his revenge-fueled, Count-of-Monte-Cristo, Man-in-the-Iron-Mask revenge-style plans. He knocked on the backdoor, his brain swirling tumultuously with schemes and torment directed solely at one person. There was a moment of brooding silence before Josh answered quietly, opening the door only a fraction to peek out at Frank anxiously, "What are you gonna do?"

"My kitchen in one hour. Make sure he's there." Frank spat before he turned and hobbled back home where Gerard was waiting for him, a look of caution and concern seemed more prominent in his features than it had before. If anyone knew what Frank was capable of, it was Ricky Greene in the eighth grade who called him a sissy and found out what happened in lieu, and it was Gerard, who had bore witness to the fury of Frank Iero when poked with a proverbial stick.

Frank pulled out all his pots and pans as Gerard slid into one of the stools by the island counter, his fingers steepled to rest his chin, his eyes all-knowing and gliding fluidly to follow Frank's angry wobbling across the kitchen, "Do I dare ask?"

"Better not." Frank muttered as he began cooking, not with love but with pure hatred in his soul, not necessarily at Ty as a person, but at Ty who had decided to fuck around and find out. With every pain-filled step, every backfire of agony from that one tiny spot, it only made him realize two things. He looked at Gerard, "First of all, don't ever agree when I ask for needle play involving my feet. And secondly, Ty needs to eat shit."

"Well, point number one, that sounds exceedingly dangerous, and to be honest, I don't think I'd be comfortable doing needle play anywhere near your feet." Gerard smiled, "I'm good, but not that good. And secondly, is that what you're planning. Because, to be fair, I think he has a bit of coprophagia, so I don't know if this is a good idea."

"Not- Jesus, Gerard." Frank scowled as he whisked a dozen eggs together in a bowl, "Not literally."

"And how was I supposed to gauge that?"

"Christ sake." Frank huffed, "What, did you genuinely think I was going to force him down and take a shit in his mouth."

"I wouldn't put it past either of you." Gerard shrugged, "I'm not judging. I thought you were cooking all this to eat it and just wait it out."

Frank was far too irate to gag, but if he had actually been taking in any of the conversation, he might have. He may have developed and receded some of the kinks he had since he started this journey, but he was fairly certain that shit play was still out of the question no matter the situation. He began separating the egg into different bowls, planning the feast out in his head, "Those there, with... Yes. And those scrambled. And... Need tomatoes."

Gerard cleared his throat, "Would it be a fair assumption that you're planning some sort of personal Fear Factor for my dear brother?"

"Autism edition."

"Someone call NBC."

"Someone call NBC?" Frank frowned, his head clouded with concoctions, far too distracted to understand the quip.

"Never you mind, focus on your little game, please. I'm in no mood for you to cock this up and have to spend the day before Christmas Eve in the emergency room."

"Thanks for the faith in my abilities, Way." Frank grunted as he bent down to grab a second frying pan from underneath in one of the cabinets. He set it down and spun around to grab ingredients from the fridge, scanning intently, "Do you think he'd hate it if I added pickles?"

"He likes crunchy things, so I doubt it. You can add banana, however. He hates it, always has. Apparently it tastes how Wednesday feels, and what he imagines Satan's taint to taste like."

Frank looked up, "God, you're vulgar today. What gives?"

"No idea what you're talking about, boy."

Frank squinted at him, "You had an extra cleansing shit this morning, didn't you?"

"Now who's vulgar?"

"You're the one with extra pep in your step and extra filth in your mouth." Frank shrugged as he grabbed an over-ripe banana and a potato masher, "I'm just always vulgar."

"Don't need to tell me that." Gerard smiled as he got up to take the discarded mugs to the sink and grab himself a bottle of water. He sipped it, capping the bottle as he stood beside Frank with his hands behind his back, "Is there anything I can do to assist?"

Frank handed him a knife and the punnet of cherry tomatoes, "In half and in the pan with the egg, stir only when its made a layer at the bottom."

"Yes, sir." Gerard smiled cheekily before turning on his heel, knife pointed safely away from them both.

When he was done, he made sure he had created a total nightmare for Ty, hitting every single one of his sensory issues in one grueling, sensory-icky, overwhelming-to-look-at buffet. There were six dishes ranging from a whole plate of eggs done in varying degrees of scrambled to fried and poached, a tomato and banana omelet that Gerard had so lovingly prepared, avocado and egg on banana bread, a plate of creamed spinach with blue cheese in the sauce, an assortment of different strong cheeses with pungent smells and worrying appearances, and to top it off, Gerard had sacrificed half of a container of his imported liver pâté.

Gerard shook his head as he scratched his eyebrow, surveying the carnage that spread across the counter much like the aftermath of a great battle, but instead of corpses and blood, it was about to be the site of Ty's untimely demise. And Frank was so ready to see it unfold. Gerard took a step back and let out a sigh, "Dear lord. You're going to traumatize him."

"I want him to suffer."

"Mission accomplished," Gerard muttered as he watched Frank put lids on all his dishes as some sort of macabre surprise, his brain satisfied with the displeasure and discomfort that it would soon bring to his sadistic opponent. If Ty was going to hit straight for the weak spots, then so was Frank.

After another ten minutes where Frank had been stewing in his own sadistic reverie, bandaging his foot in the process, Ty and Josh walked in together in an unnerved silence. Ty stopped when he saw the covered plates, his eyes shaded with distrust and concern as Frank smiled, "I thought I'd make some food for the two of us after that first round. Should be easy enough, right, big guy?"

Ty slid into a seat next to Gerard, sitting anxiously on his hands. Josh stood nearby, fretting and biting at his thumbnail as Frank began lifting the covers, watching Ty's eyes widen even more. Josh looked concerned, whispering, "Lemme get a bucket." before he ran next door.

Ty took a deep breath and looked at Frank, his emotions hidden behind his usual stoic mask, "What are the rules?"

"We have to take some of everything and whoever finishes the most, wins." Frank smiled, "Except if you wanna tap out already. That's totally fine, too."

Ty watched him, his pouted lips set in a grim line as Frank put one of everything on both of their plates, sliding Ty's platter across the counter like a player and a chess piece. Frank took a bite from a piece of scrambled egg, leaning against the counter, not batting an eyelid. However, Ty just stared at his food for a minute before trying some of the banana bread. Frank could see the other two men holding their breath, and all three watched Ty for any reaction, but he surprisingly kept eating with a pokerface, not allowing Frank the pleasure of seeing his dismay.

After at least two minutes of chewing the same bite of banana bread, Ty moved on to the omelet and paused, his face a rather dirty shade of green that made Frank smile. Josh leaned in, "Daddy, you've done so well. Don't do this if you can't, it's okay. He tapped out, you can, too, you'd still be even."

Ty scowled and pushed the plate aside, fuming internally and externally, as though he had been bested at his own game - in a way, he had. Frank grinned brightly, watching Josh console his dismayed Dominant that was now glaring at the counter like a child being scolded for not finishing their vegetables.

"All right, it's even. We need a tie-breaker for today." Gerard announced, "Unless you are both done for the day. I hope."

Frank smiled smugly at his secondary Dom as he set the plates aside, making a mental note to put the leftovers in recyclable containers to give to the homeless man who he saw some mornings on his jog with Josh. He looked at Gerard, "Name it."

"'Name it' what, exactly? Just because you're in a pissing contest, doesn't mean you can be impolite." Gerard countered, the small reprimand made Ty smile, however his dreams were dashed when Gerard flicked him on the ear sharply, "I'm not taking sides."

"Name it, sir."

Gerard eyed him as he reached into his pocket, the unmistakable 'click' indicating to Frank that he had just earned himself a spanking on the counter. He was up to eight this week, their weekly polishing sessions were every Sunday and some weeks, Frank only got a quiz on his knowledge, but other weeks where he had bratted-out against his Dom, he got his comeuppance. Right now, he didn't seem to care, squinting at Gerard, which only added another two.

He huffed and folded his arms, leaning against the counter to look at Ty, turning his annoyance on someone who wouldn't be spanking him in a few days for his attitude problems.

"Watch me dunk you in a clay mud pit and see how you like it when someone plays off of your sensory issues." Ty seethed angrily, glaring at Frank, the small distraction clearly had no effect on his mood.

Josh immediately jumped in to distract Ty, leaning almost in front of him to tear his attention away from the young submissive that he seemed to be sizing up. He looked into Ty's eyes and made sure that Ty was focused on him instead, "What's something you're good at, Daddy?"

"Fucking?"

Josh snorted, "Keep it as PG as possible, Daddy."

Frank's eyebrows rose, his immediate reaction was to interject and say that he was good at fucking, too. He opened his mouth to relay this information when Gerard snorted, eyeing Frank as if he knew exactly what his submissive had been thinking. Frank smiled brightly, glad to see that someone agreed with him, and turned his attention back to Ty, who added, "Sucking and snorting."

Frank laughed, "Stop naming verbs."

Josh sighed and Gerard rolled his eyes as he fiddled with the cuff of his shirt, "Ty, please be serious. We aren't all going to see who can snort more cocaine between the two of you. This isn't the backstage of a Fleetwood Mac concert."

"God, that's an outdated reference." Ty scoffed.

"Hey, bite your tongue. Stevie Nicks is never outdated." Frank folded his arms.

Ty looked between the two of them and nodded slowly, "Now I see why you're getting married; you're two halves of the same geriatric."

"Oh, please, spell 'geriatric'."

"G-E-R-" Ty paused, huffing and waving his hands, "Fine, whatever. Besides, I never mentioned snow, just snorting."

Gerard frowned, "Then what exactly are you planning on snorting, Joseph?"

Ty looked at Frank determinedly, "Whatever you put in front of me, little boy."

Josh sighed exasperatedly, "This isn't an episode of Jackass, Daddy."

"What's Jackass?"

Frank looked between them, wondering how their conversation had taken so far of a turn in the wrong direction, the evidence of Ty's upbringing was abundantly clear at this point if he had never heard of such a popular show that was clearly targeted for someone just like him and made by men just like him. Frank cleared his throat pointedly and Ty tore his gaze from Josh, turning back to his young opponent, "This is our wild card round, so for each dare we complete, we get a point added to our total. They don't have to be the same anymore."

"How many?"

"First one to get three points?"

"Deal."

"I dare you...to..." Ty looked around and then grinned, "Wax your armpits."

Frank's smile vanished within a millisecond and a wave of fear washed over him, uprooting his confidence like a piece of kelp in a riptide. That was the one thing he hadn't been able to do yet - He was able to sit through getting his face lasered and the one time he waxed only his lower legs, but he wasn't brave enough to go near his armpits. Hell, he was still shaving his ass rather than waxing even though he knew the consequences. He didn't want to admit that he was pretty afraid of wax. But Ty knew.

Frank scowled ruefully without taking his eyes off of Ty, clenching his fists on the marble countertop, "Josh, do we have any wax?"

"We have the wax strips you used when you wore that dress for Gerard's work party." Josh offered and hopped up to fetch them.

"I can fetch a gag if you need something to bite on, my boy."

"If I'm waxing my pits then Ty is waxing his legs."

Ty shook his head vehemently, " No fucking way. I have way more leg than you have underarm. That's not a fair wager."

"Yes it is."

"No way."

"Yes."

"No."

They both looked at Gerard in unison and Ty nodded, offering him the floor, "Judge, your ruling?"

Frank added, "Would his balls be a fairer bet?"

Gerard pursed his lips, "Then it isn't about size as it is sensitivity. Either he also waxes his armpits or you make him do something equally painful but not wax-related."

"Nipple piercing?"

"Child's play." Ty waved a hand and Frank was immediately getting agitated again, and from the look on Gerard's face, he could tell. He knew Frank got frustrated much faster when he was in a competitive headspace, and he knew Frank could have a full meltdown if it went unanswered, which seemed to be rapidly approaching.

"Why don't you just make him happy and have him snort something. Something painful, but non-lethal, please."

Josh came back at that moment, rounding the corner with a box of wax strips in hand, "Absolutely not."

Ty instantly sat up, not having heard him, his gaze trained on Frank, "I bet you can't find a damn thing I won't snort, little Way."

Frank huffed and looked around the kitchen, spinning his engagement ring as he tried to calm his rising temper. Some part of him knew that if he had not been in the zone, the 'little Way' comment would have made him internally splutter and probably blush, but now was not the time - he was out for blood. Gerard sighed, "Your willingness to snort something doesn't make it any less painful, Joseph."

Frank spun around suddenly as he had been mentally recounting the inventory of his pantry one by one. He grinned maliciously, "Soy sauce."

"Your dare first, homeboy." Ty gestured to Josh who was anxiously holding the pink box of wax strips, warming one of them in his big hands.

Frank removed his sweater and hopped up onto the counter, lifting his arm up as Josh wiped his armpit with a towel and made sure it was dry enough. He peeled the strip and applied it, rubbing over it carefully as Frank bit down on the gag that Gerard held out to him and put a hand on his back for support, seemingly knowing that there was no way he'd be able to talk either of them out of this stupid war. Ty grinned nearby as Josh did a small countdown before pulling swiftly. Frank screamed out immediately, the pain somehow ten times worse than he had ever expected it to be, a hundred times worse than any spanking he had ever received, and definitely more painful than a whipping thanks to the nature of the area. Josh put his hand on the inflamed area, applying warmth and pressure that seemed to help the pain, but it didn't stop Frank's eyes from watering or his leg from jerking automatically. Gerard leaned in to examine the damage and gave Josh's head a small pat, "A clean pull, well done, pup."

Frank huffed, drooling down his chin as he blinked away his tears. Gerard looked at him, "Are you okay to do the second one?"

Frank just lifted his arm stubbornly despite it trembling in anticipation and driven by anger. Josh helped him through the second pull, and even though it did hurt, at least now he knew what to expect. He did still hate every single second and now he had to deal with the sunburn-feeling lingering under both arms. Gerard chuckled, and Frank knew that papa loved his tenacity and how he refused to give up despite the pain - it was how they bonded, after all. They all gave Frank a moment of composure and some praise from Josh, kissing his cheek and nuzzling him as he closed his eyes and did his best to zone out, separating the pain from his thoughts and locking it away for later. He spat the gag out, panting as he pulled on a loose t-shirt, careful to avoid his underarms at any cost. Ty smiled simply as Frank hopped down from the island counter, "Well done."

Gerard watched apprehensively as Frank took the soy sauce out of the pantry, and he seemed compelled to ask, "How are you planning to snort a liquid?"

Ty and Frank both responded in unison from opposite sides of the kitchen, "A straw, duh."

Gerard eyed them, scanning from one to the other before turning to look at Frank fanning his armpit with a napkin, "I don't want to know how you know that, boy."

"Hey, I watched The Sopranos."

"I don't think Tony Soprano ever snorted soy sauce from a straw, but what do I know... A straw, you say?" Gerard raised an eyebrow and Ty nodded as if it should be obvious. Gerard sighed sarcastically, "Of course. I don't know why I didn't think of a straw up my nose. It's almost as if I have no concept of how to do drugs."

Josh just stood to the side, looking very pale and clammy as he watched Frank pour a teaspoon of soy sauce into a ramekin and cut a plastic straw into thirds. Gerard seemed to notice Josh's anxiety and pulled him into his lap for support, watching the festivities over Josh's broad shoulder. Ty took the straw and leaned down, snorting the entire amount in one go with way too refined a snort.

There was the tiniest pause before Ty was choking and coughing, scrambling from his seat as he held onto the counter, his knees buckling and vast spools of saliva flinging onto every nearby surface. He heaved and suddenly began projectile vomiting everywhere, including the floor, the counter, and himself. The color was one that Frank had never seen, a mixture of yellow stomach acid, undigested food, and hot cocoa. He gagged only slightly as Josh yelped and got up, trying to help Ty to the sink, but Ty slipped in his own sick, falling and landing on his back with a squelch - something that genuinely looked as if it belonged in a cartoon. Frank had luckily jumped out of the way, watching in horror from the sidelines with his t-shirt pulled up over his nose whilst Josh stood at his side, seemingly in shock. Gerard stepped around the sick and crouched down to try and help Ty, but the latter waved a hand, "'M fine."

"Daddy-" Josh tried to argue but Ty turned and spat on the floor, wiping his mouth, before he just began laughing. Josh held his own head, very overwhelmed, watching Ty sit up carefully, still cackling in such a carefree manner despite the state of himself. He seemed to be having so much fun that he didn't seem to care, or notice, that he was sitting in his own vomit or that it had splattered up his back and head like a Rorschach print. He continued laughing, holding his clean hand out to Frank for a high-five, which he definitely received for his valiant efforts.

Frank laughed at Ty's bright red face and snotty nose, stepping out of the way as Gerard helped him to his feet, "I'm calling this a draw. You two are fucking insane."

"Hey-" Frank pouted, watching Ty laugh and cough, his boots squeaking as he almost slipped again, somehow not thinking to step out of the sick puddle rather than frolic in it.

"You guys go, I'll clean this up. It's my mess." Ty hiccupped and burped loudly, hitting his chest with the side of his fist, his hair that had been growing for the past few months was now sticking up and drying in a crust. Frank was definitely not going to tell him, not because he found it funny, but because Ty seemed so genuinely happy that he would rather wait for the serotonin to wear off before breaking the news.

Frank shook his head and hopped over one of the puddles that had a shoe skid in it, carefully tiptoeing toward the cleaning cupboard, "I'll help."

Ty smiled at him warmly, carefully taking off his hoodie to throw it nearby to the washing machine along with his pants, standing in his t-shirt and boxers. He crouched down and began cleaning, smiling and laughing with Frank, regaling in how much fun they both had. Josh took Gerard's hand as they walked to the back door, "They're maniacs, sir. We're living with complete loons."

Gerard stepped outside as Josh opened the door, taking a deep breath of fresh air, "Absolutely."

"We can hear you!" Frank called, laughing as Ty threatened to throw a sodden paper towel at him. He was so used to cleaning up his own vomit from the few times where he had thrown up during a scene, he genuinely wasn't fazed by it anymore and he was truly grateful. His mom had said she got used to it from being a nurse, and at the time, he would have never believed it, but exposure therapy seemed to work wonders. All those people who went to the top of a building to get over their fear of heights, maybe they're onto something.

It took a good twenty minutes for them to clean and sterilize the kitchen after the first round of the dare war concluded, and Frank was busy putting the mop away when he caught the tail-end of a conversation between Josh and Gerard that immediately piqued his interest. He looked up from within the small cabinet near the sink toward the patio door, listening to Gerard's monologue about the Mongol empire. Frank was confounded as to why it took him almost a year to realize that his husband-to-be seemed to be completely enraptured with history.

"Sir?"

Gerard held his hand up toward his primary submissive, indicating and acknowledging Frank's request to speak as he finished his conversation. He ended his statement about Genghis Khan and turned his sole focus on Frank, "Yes, boy?"

"I-I didn't know you liked history, sir."

"It was my second choice if I hadn't majored in Political Science." Gerard smiled as he glanced at Ty lighting a dog-friendly stick of incense to rid the room of strong chemical smells. He had already gone to shower and change clothes, and he seemed as calm as ever despite losing his lunch less than an hour ago. Gerard looked at Frank again, "Did you not know this?"

Frank found himself pouting a little, "No, sir."

Gerard's easy smile seemed to abate his useless feelings somewhat, and he couldn't help the little spark of intrigue in his stomach and the incessant urge to squeeze Gerard of every last drop of information he possessed, just as he did whenever Gerard discussed literature, politics or... anything, really. Frank could listen to his Master talk about any topic for hours, even with his shortened attention span, just because he found the older man so enthralling.

Gerard walked back into the kitchen, shutting the door behind him before he put his arm around his young fiance, "I know that look; you have questions."

"Of course I do, Apollon," Frank smiled up at him as he was lead into the living room. Gerard sat on the sofa and carefully draped his submissive across his lap, the two of them watching as Ty began lighting a fire nearby and Josh stayed behind to prepare hot cocoa and a puppuccino for all five family members.

"What questions do you have, my little Cyn." Gerard whispered, their intimate pet names coming to the foreground in front of the others was usually very rare, however, neither seemed to mind. Frank adored his new nickname - yes, 'prince' was his sentimental first nickname outside of his submissive pet name, and they had played around with 'Cynthia' in the past, but Frank found it too feminine at the time. Their recent shortening still contained an homage to Hyacinth, but it was much shorter, much more ambiguous, and made him feel so special. And it sounded like 'sin', which was fun, too.

"What can you tell me, papa?" Frank asked softly, his eyes focused on the crackling fire nearby, the colors and fluidity of the flames always seemed to captivate him and silence his brain.

Gerard hummed as he rubbed Frank's thigh with his thumb, "Did you know that Apollo has a last name?"

"I thought he had one name," Frank looked at his Dominant, "Like Cher, or... Y'know, Jesus.

Gerard chuckled, "Technically, Jesus had a last name, but it isn't the way we do now. It's not like he was Jesus Michaels, it's more like a title. His whole title was Jesus of Nazareth."

"If he exists." Ty muttered quietly as he scrolled through his phone, stimming quietly with one of Jim's ears.

Gerard chuckled yet again, his mood seemingly elevated as he was given the chance to discuss matters of history, "As I was saying, Apollo is usually what he is known as, but it is actually the name of his Roman counterpart, his name is 'Apollon', and depending on who you ask, his last name is either 'Loxias', or 'Pythios'."

"Really?"

"He was also known as other names such as 'Phoebus', which is Greek for 'bright', if I remember correctly. And he was also called 'Delian', which was because of his patroned city of Delphi."

"Sounds like 'dolphin'."

"That's the point." Gerard smiled as he took his sugar-free cocoa from Josh and sipped it, "Long story short, he transformed into a dolphin."

"No, no, no, you can't just say that this guy turned into a dolphin and move on as if you were talking about the weather." Frank laughed, whispering a 'thank you' to Josh as he took his toffee chocolate cocoa and nursed it against his chest, "What happened?"

"He had just slain a dragoness and decided that it wasn't enough action for the day, so he turned into a dolphin to hijack a Cretan merchant ship, and of course, the crew were all terrified and huddled below deck while he directed the ship toward the harbor in Crete."

"Why?"

"He wanted to direct it toward one of his temples in Mount Parnassus." Gerard took another dainty sip of his warm drink and set it down on the table, "He was trying to escape an island and all that, he liked getting himself into trouble. He was turned into a human twice by his father for being a hero, and being a rebellious shit at the same time."

"He sounds like a blast." Josh added from his perch near Ty's feet.

Ty nodded as he eyed the cup of cocoa hesitantly, sniffing it and pausing to see if he would vomit again. When he seemed to be in the clear, he took a small sip and added, "Yeah, he's really cheerful for the God of Disease."

"I never said that." Gerard eyed him, "He, like many others, knows how to have fun, but also where and when to set their loyalties and not stray from that line. He set a plague upon the mortals that caused the Spartan war because a man refused to release a kidnapped daughter of his High Priest."

"So, he killed a ton of people for one person he loved?" Ty scoffed.

"Wouldn't you?" Gerard asked simply, his words resonating with everyone in the room, the straightforward edge that lilted two simple words was enough to make Frank's chest tighten.

Would he?

From the way that Gerard's grip tightened on Frank's legs, it answered his internal question more than any words ever could: Yes. Yes, he would.

Frank couldn't help but think about how Gerard would defend him if he ever needed it, and it took him a second to realize that he already had. Perhaps he hadn't slain a thousand people just for the heart of his young submissive, but he had still protected him. In a way, it was similar to what Apollo had done, but not with physical disease. He had put his duties to his people aside to protect someone close to him, damn the consequences. He had lost too many partners before he met his little prince, and he couldn't bear the thought of losing him to something just as deadly as a plague. Frank had seen some of the comments made about him and about Gerard in the newspaper when their news had come out, and even though it had broken him, he still had his shining protector to keep him from the disease that was lurking in the hearts of those mere mortals. Gerard would never be comparable to just any human being, Frank never saw him that way, and he knew it to be true when he saw how worried he got any time Gerard got sick. Frank saw his Master as invincible, a statue of gold, a superhuman, a God. Gods can't get a cold, Gods can't be struck down by a bullet or inflicted by human words, and Frank saw so many of those other ethereal qualities in his Dominant, that when he was reminded of his mortality, Frank almost got whiplash most times.

"...Frank?"

"Hu- Pardon?" Frank blinked and turned to see Gerard looking at him expectantly, "Sorry, sir, I zoned out for a second."

"Do you need a nap?"

"Not like that, just in thought, sir." Frank reassured, "I'm okay. What were you saying, sir?"

"I asked if you had any questions about history unrelated to the Pantheon, boy."

"Oh, uh... I mean, the Italians were linked to the Greeks in a way, right? The Romans."

"Of course, my boy. The Roman Conquest is a big part of Greek history." Gerard picked up his cocoa and took a larger sip now that it had cooled, "Why?"

"I mean, I know some stuff about them from history, but I don't know much about my other heritage."

"Careful." Ty said in sing-song, "He reads like a Wikipedia page, ask and ye shall receive."

Frank frowned and looked behind him at his secondary, "What's that mean?"

"It means," Ty chugged the last sip of his bitter cocoa and set the mug down, "He's going to tell it like it is, he did it with me."

"How so?"

"I found out from my grandfather that we were related to Chief Joseph, all the way back to the Four Chiefs of the Indigenous land, like Chief Sitting Bull and that shit. So I made the fucking mistake of asking Professor Buzzkill over here about it instead of reading some books."

"Did I, or did I not give you the exact information you wanted?" Gerard replied curtly, "What, are you upset that I didn't sugar-coat the genocide of your people? I'm sorry, Mr. Suddenly-Sensitive, they didn't all get slain by white men, they were gently euthanized like sick cats and floated up to the High Plains. Better?"

Ty scowled at him, "Firstly, our version of heaven is called Wakan Tanka, and secondly, you know that's not what I meant, you sarcastic shitstain."

"No, please, enlighten me. You knew me for three years by then and didn't think that I would tell you a historical event with as much neutrality as I can for you to form your own opinions? What, you want me to use propaganda? Is that because you're biased or because I was a politician?"

Ty stared at him for a minute before grumbling and sitting back, pulling his beanie down. Gerard shook his head, "Either way, you have a lot to unpack there, Chief Joseph."

"I'm not Chief." Ty muttered, "I don't know if you know how it works these days but it's not like lineage."

"You vote on who is most competent, yes, I know."

"That's why he lost." Frank grinned and then his eyes widened when he saw Ty's murderous gaze. He shrunk back and hid in Gerard's neck as the latter grinned proudly.

"There you have it, Joseph. The tribe has spoken."

"You all suck." Ty muttered as he got up and skulked out of the room, whistling for both of his pups to follow. When Gerard and Frank were alone in their living room, Frank planted a gentle kiss to his Dominant's jaw, sighing contentedly.

"I hope you know, that is only going to fuel his fire for the second round of this infernal dare war you have going on now."

"Was it too much?"

"Not at all, I feel like he does need to be taken down a peg or two sometimes, and it helps when it isn't always from me." Gerard smiled, "I was impressed by that mouth yet again."

Frank felt his cheeks warm up and he looked away, playing with the drawstring of his sweatpants, "So, do I wanna know anything about my father's side of the history book?"

"It depends," Gerard sighed as he sat back, getting comfy on the sofa with his feet up on an ottoman. Frank smiled when he saw the pair of striped socks in shades of green that he had bought his papa two weeks ago.

"On?"

"Every populous has a pro and con to their ancestry. I'm sure you can ask any German or Russian, or even any European. A love for one's country can run muddy with the waters of their bloodshed."

Frank nodded, "I guess it's a global thing. But...they don't really teach you much about Japan except for Pearl Harbor and Hiroshima."

He nodded gravely "Two very big things, yes. Japan had a lot of sway in the second world war."

"I'm sure a lot of countries did." Frank whispered, a sinking feeling settling in his stomach as he began to realize that his ancestors probably weren't going to be the glowing figures of victory in this particular tale.

He hummed softly, "They did. And a lot of people, in fact, the majority of the world know about the mass genocide of Jews across the world because of the Germans and associated allies, but not everyone knows what happened to Nanking."

Frank paused, his lips pursing, "What happened to Stephen King's grandma? Shit- I'm so sorry, I- I joke when I'm anxious. Dude-"

Gerard smiled softly, "I know. Relax, dear boy. You aren't the only one to deflect with humor, especially when discussing death."

"So, what's Nanking?"

"It's actually Nanjing, but Nanking is the romanized name. It was essentially a miniature genocide at the hands of the Japanese of the citizens in Nanjing. I say miniature not because only few people died, but in comparison to the Holocaust."

"Should they be compared, papa?"

"No, not at all," Gerard whispered and took Frank's hand into his, "Not exactly a pleasant topic two days before Christmas."

Frank shook his head, "I don't mind, I wanna know."

"Well, about two hundred thousand Chinese citizens died," He whispered as Frank sipped his now-lukewarm cocoa, the taste of it dulled by the weird sadness in his chest, "The incident itself is just known as The Rape of Nanking."

"Rape...?"

"Well, they mean it more in the sense of invading and ruining in such a stark and violent way, but there was assault involved. Many photos and documents were destroyed by the Japanese government to try and quell it, but it is hard to forget those images once you've seen them."

"You... You saw them?"

"Some, yes. When you love history as I do, and you work in politics, you have a little more sway when it comes to confidential records and things that civilians don't get to see. For JFK, it was aliens, for me, it was a sea of corpses-"

"Okay, okay." Frank interrupted, starting to understand why he should have heeded Ty's warning. He gave Gerard a polite smile, "I get the idea, sir."

"In spite of that, I find Japanese culture fascinating. Their food is so intriguing and the things they can fit into a vending machine? Unrivaled."

Frank let out a laugh, caught off guard by the remark. He giggled, brushing Gerard's curls back, "What more can you tell me about Apollo, though?"

"He liked cows."

"Cows?"

"Story goes that at the time, Apollo had been given the duty of being the herdsman of all of the cows belonging to the Gods, and one day Hermes stole fifty of them from him."

"How do you steal fifty fucking cows, exactly?"

"He went in the dead of night, and made them walk backwards facing him. He also wore sandals made of wicker to disguise his tracks. Apollo eventually found him in a cave after searching the world over, and Hermes denied up and down that he never saw them, and in fact, he had never even seen a cow in his life."

"But why?"

"He craved meat."

"Bastard." Frank smiled playfully.

"Hermes then turned himself into a baby because Apollo was absolutely furious, and Apollo ended up taking Hermes to Zeus to settle the entire thing. They both spoke to Zeus, telling their side of the story, and while Apollo told only the truth, Hermes spoke only in lies. It was after reconciling that Hermes gifted Apollo with his lyre and proclaimed him to be the God of music and arts."

"No way."

"Oh, yes." Gerard nodded, "That, and there is a rumor that the story of Icarus and the Sun, was actually Apollo. Since he had such hard luck in love, they think that Icarus fell too hard and fast for the God of Sun and got hurt just as Daphne and Hyakinthos did."

Frank pouted, "Jeez, what a fucking shit show."

"Most mythology about the Greek Gods can generally be considered a shit show." Gerard smiled warmly as he pulled Frank a tad closer to his chest, "Do you have any other questions?"

"No, papa."

"How about that nap?"

"Yes, papa."