Mesaraih's mind was swirling. On one hand, it was full of an almost violent lust for Venus, of being under her care, of drinking her tea... and on the other, it was everything rational in him trying to scream at him to get out. That side of him, however, didn't carry a lot of weight. It didn't seem to make sense.<br/><br/>Ester grabbed him and pointed to Venus, claiming she was a demon of desire. His rational side thought it must make sense, but what did Ester know? Ester didn't look particularly well herself. She could easily just be spewing out nonsense that even she didn't understand. Of course this was no demon.<br/><br/>Mesaraih turned back to Venus as she poured out more cups of tea. She handed one to Ester, who accepted it.<br/><br/><span style="font-style: italic">See? Nothing wrong here</span>, he thought to himself. But he also noticed the strained look of her face.<br/><br/>There was something odd about Venus's voice, as if it echoed and resonated with someone else's. She strode over to Mesaraih, offering him another cup. He had resisted drinking the cup before, but this one seemed different. It smelled even better than the last one.<br/><br/>His hand accepted it, and he felt himself tremble the tiniest amount as Venus sat down in his lap. Mesaraih's hands brought the cup to his mouth, and he took a sip. He sloshed the hot liquid around his mouth as his mind debated furiously about whether or not he should drink it, but it was no use. He swallowed the tea, and he looked down to Venus to see her smiling radiantly.<br/><br/>"Do you like it?" she asked, her eyes almost begging him to respond positively.<br/><br/>Mesaraih nodded, his eyes more glassy than ever. His hand rose to her cheek and he caressed it. She slid further into his arms and Mesaraih felt his face moving towards hers, slowly, inexplicably, at long last...<br/><br/>Her lips were only inches away and he could feel her breath on him. She was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. But then he saw Ester out of the corner of his eye, and just for a second, the image of Venus in front of him shimmered slightly. He stopped his advance and retreated his head slightly, confused once more.<br/><br/>"What's wrong?" Venus asked him, slipping a hand under his shirt. It felt warm, nice. Too nice. This wasn't real. But why shouldn't he enjoy it?<br/><br/><span style="font-style: italic">Because it's not fucking real!</span>a voice inside his head shouted. His own voice. He remembered the spirit of nostalgia, and the children under his care. He looked back to Venus and slowly began to extricate himself from her, fumbling to say something but unable to talk. It was the hardest thing he had ever done, walking away from her. But as he retreated, the more proper it felt. And yet his body would still not respond as he would like. Venus was approaching him again, a hurt expression on her face. Or it could have been angry. He wasn't sure.<br/><br/>"Ester," he said slowly, doing his best to turn and look at her, "I don't think I can do this... I don't know what to do..."