Welcome to Gaia! ::

"Of course I'm certain! Why would you think otherwise?"

It was something that Richard Moreau had on his mind for a couple of weeks now, and while the notion had skirted in and out of his mind every so often, he had gotten to the point where he was determined to follow through with it.

In the last few weeks, he had seen a side of his partner that he never knew existed, or rather, he always suspected was there, but he had never seen due to his own stubborn nature. Krishna may not have openly admitted it, but Richard knew that he cared for him more than he let on, and it was that night that the two had obtained their youma that Richard had come to the definitive conclusion that the two of them needed to go through with this.

So, Richard lead the way, knowing exactly where to take him and his partner in crime for their tattoos. Who better to ink them up than a man that was already decorated with tattoos himself? It didn't take long for them to find the establishment, and Richard had no qualms in letting his presence be known to the inhabitants and the hunky tattoo artist he sought out. "Hello, is there an artist in the house? My friend and I could really use your help!"

"Because I fully expect you to complain the minute the needle hits your skin." Krishna retorted as they walked through the door of the tattoo parlor. He was not trying to truly deter his friend from this course of action; Richard was a grown man and could certainly take responsibility for his decisions and actions. The florist had never minded the needle, himself, and even if he had he would not have spoken out about it. The candymaker, however? His pain tolerance was notably less.

A brow arched at the sight of the sleepy man who seemed to awaken only to greet them. It was unprofessional, even in the laxer enivornment they had entered. Still, he could not deny that with his numerous inked masterpieces and piercings, this Kor McKneil was interesting to look at. And the canvas wasn't hard to look at either. Krishna looked him over with an admiring eye before accepting the offered hand. "Krishna Dhawan. Both of us, if you have the time."

Krishna, huh? Not a bad looking man. Kor's eyes looked Krishna over from head to toe before shaking his hand with a firm grip. "Krishna. Very interesting name you've got there." He nodded again and stretched himself out. "Yes, I've got time for both of you." And then Richard spoke and Kor's smirk turned fond and he shrugged. "Maybe, Richard, I'm just not used to you being sober when I listen to you talk. You were pretty hungover last time, hm?" He gave the other a wink.

M... Matching tattoos were a pretty intimate thing. Followed by the words mutual partnership, that light in Kor's eyes dimmed before his fond smile turned professional. "Of course. I can see what I can do. I've got pictures of snakes and roses. If you two can pick them out, just as a basis, I can see what I can do."

So Richard was with someone, hm? That was alright. He'd only been out on two dates with the man, but it wasn't like they were actually dating. They didn't call each other all the time, or even say anything beyond a nick name at best, but it wasn't the usual dating terms he'd use. Going behind the desk, Kor pulled out a few binders of photos of tattoos he'd done and flipped one to the flowers and one to the serpents. "Did you have a specific snake in mind? A specific rose? Ah, and a spot. Where would you like them?"

As he spoke, the idea of what had happened with Richard being taken was eating at him. Did Krishna know? He rubbed his neck as his jaw ticked a little. He might have sold his body at one point in time, but when it came to doing those things on his own will, he liked to be honest. Then again, Richard wasn't the only one at fault. Kor didn't ask. He didn't really think about it. It just... kind of happened. But the breakfast the next morning? Was that.. Richard could have mentione- No.

It's not just Richard's fault. It's not. It was so easy to blame just Richard, but that wouldn't be true. "Look these over and let me know." The smile on his face was plastered, a completely false work smile that got him through the customers he didn't really want to deal with. Being a new tattoo shop, he didn't have the luxury of turning them away.

Richard wasn't the type to deny the truth, especially when he knew that there was little to benefit him from doing so. He gave a meekish grin and paired it with a shrug before speaking with faux coyness. "Oh, well, I just haven't had the time to dive into the liquor cabinet today. Besides, I was told that the best tattoo artists won't accept a client that's completely and utterly plastered. Bad for business and the customer, right?"

Despite his overly playful manner, Richard could tell that something had gotten under the tattoo artist's skin, and it wasn't ink. And never one to want to go without an answer, Richard shot Kor an inquisitive look, allowing Krishna to look over the binder. He personally already knew what he wanted- a rose was a rose, after all, and it took real skill to screw that up, or at least Richard thought. "Hm, is something the matter, Thor? Do you think I can't handle a little ink?"

It was a wild guess, one that he hadn't humored but Krishna seemed to think him unable to handle it. He was willing to prove him wrong, and Kor too, if need be. Without alcohol, even! His attention was pulled away when Krishna began spewing out various names, and he couldn't help but flash his friend a flabbergasted expression. Were those snakes, or roses? It had to be roses- he worked in a flower shop, so it would stand to reason he knew his stuff, and he gave a scoff, even as he glanced over Krishna's shoulder. "Show off."

At least Richard knew the cobra, but what he didn't know was the other little factoid that Krishna dropped on him. His red eyes widened with surprise, and without warning he reached for the back of Krishna's shirt, his curiosity unable to be contained. "You... you have a tattoo on your back? We've been partners for now long and you never told me? Let me see!"

Krishna was not absorbed in the reference book to the point that he could not tell that something was going on between the two other men in the room. He simply didn't care. Richard's personal life was his own. At his partner's comment, he merely snorted. "Your ignorance does not make my knowledge more impressive. Surely you could list all the candies in your shop?"

Krishna's mouth twitched into a small smile at the description of people with unrealistic expectations. He knew precisely the type of customer to which Kor referred - most business owners and their employees did- but he shook his head. "No, nothing like that. It is-"

Then Richard butted in and yanked on his shirt. The florist scoffed at his wonder and impatience, "You never asked. But here, I will show you. If only so our artist can see too." Without further hesitation, the florist pulled off his shirt and turned so that both his partner and the artist could see the revealed ink.

The tattoo stretched the length of his shoulders and down his shoulder blades. It depicted a kirin in midleap, its head held high and its tail extended. The colors and flatness of the lines were consistent with an Asian style, but the colors were not as traditional. The scales were shaded a teal blue, while the mane and tail were as rainbow as the man who sported the tattoo. The eyes, hooves, and horn were all done in yellow. It was a piece that had taken much time and money, but it was also several years old and likely in need of touchups.

"As I was saying, it is easily avoidable. Surely we can find a place?"

Kor watched their interactions with a critical eye. Why? He didn't know. Richard wasn't his boyfriend by a long shot, so this jealousy was stupid and he didn't like it. Right now the tattoo artist was trying to shake off those feelings as Krishna exposed his back. This was all about professionalism right now. He moved forward, examining the ink, the colors and just made a small noise. Asian with a twist. Nice. His hands moved to trace some of the lines, feeling if the one who did it was heavy handed or light handed, and it seemed pretty light handed considering things. Kor whistled as he looked at the colors, the detail work and then nodded.

"We can work around it. It's fairly big and cuts off in a clean sort of way. I could even blend it into a full back piece. I'm pretty good at style mimic..." He hummed softly and then pulled away to nod to himself. "Did we want the back? Or did we want to go with the arm? My price starts at $40 and then go from there with colors, size and hours put into it. Though with what you're describing, I don't see it getting very expensive."

Then Richard was speaking about his customers and Kor nodded. "Yeah. Pain tolerance is all about the person. There's no set pain level for people. They vary just like personalities." He gave the other a sort of smile and then just shrugged lightly, going behind his desk to get a sip of energy drink he had opened before his impromptu nap. Letting out a sharp sigh, he kept listening to Richard talk about Krishna and just shoved his own personal feelings aside. Whatever. It wasn't any concern of his anymore. They had their little roll in the hay and that was it. That's all he expected. With a little noise, he arched a brow.

"Some people, Richard, don't feel a need to show off their ink. Most of the time the ink they get is personal and for themselves. It's up to the person if they want to show it off or not. There's never really a good time to be like "oh by the way I have a tattoo" if it isn't new. With a back piece, or any piece you don't see all the time, it can honestly just completely slip your mind that you have it there." Kor was really defensive about people thinking all tattoos should be shown off or even all tattoos should be hidden. It's up to the person with the ink what they do with it. Instead of twisting that knife and letting it hurt, Kor was just getting annoyed. It was easier than hurting and jealousy.

"As for where the best place for virgin skin would be, it'd have to be your upper arm. It's one of the least painful places to tattoo." That mask of professionalism slipped back in after his little speech, hiding his annoyance with that practiced tone.

Now it was impossible to ignore that something was amiss in the tattoo shop, and when Richard was finally able to tear his gaze off of the masterpiece that was decorating Krishna's back, he looked at Kor with such an intense gaze that he might have hoped to gain Superman's eye sight. A waste of the talent as he might have originally used to it to get a glimpse of the finer ones naked, but with Kor, he had seen him in such a form, and still liked what he saw, to this day. That train of thought brought him to one possibility, and Richard could only begin to wonder if maybe Kor thought of Krishna as his-

His train of thought derailed at the talk of business and then pain, and what a part for Richard's mind to return, too. In response to not showing off the ink, Richard wasn't afraid to admit that he didn't follow, and even though it might have put his foot in his mouth, he felt the need to express his thoughts. "Very well, if that's how some would like to be. I suppose I shouldn't be surprised that Krishna hid his... he's so secretive and aloof."

But it was hard to ignore the defensive tone of Kor's voice, as well as Krishna's explanation and suggestion now ringing in his ears, and with that, he thought it would be best to back off that topic. He's done something to upset the mighty Thor, and Richard was clueless as to how best to rectify the situation, so for once, he'd allow Krishna to handle it. At Kor's suggestion, he pulled up his sleeves and gave his left shoulder a glance, as though it would be the last time he ever saw it bare and naked... now was not a good time to have second thoughts, but he refused to show it, remaining firm and strong in his stance and drawing more attention to his refusal to give up his precious bourbon to distract from the sudden nervousness he felt. "You have your hobbies and I have mine. Hm!"

And as if to prove a point, he announced, loudly, and he made sure neither of them could ignore the edge in his voice as he moved towards one of the tables. "I think the upper arm would do just nicely! Now, let's get this whole thing underway before this tag team continues any further."