Gideon didn’t need to explain why it was dangerous for Cass if the nobles caught wind of it. It was obvious that any strange behavior would be placed on Cass’ head, not on anyone else’s.

It was a bit surprising that Gideon was putting his foot down about the plan that Cass hadn’t even been aware of though.

"While I know it’s dangerous, there aren’t a lot of men in the mansion. I wouldn’t even consider asking Byron for help, or Sam. The men are more like his siblings than anything else." Cass’ face warmed.

"I like to consider them my cousins." Cass muttered, and Edgar squeezed his hand.

"Cousins, then. We can’t ask them, and while there are others in the mansion, I don’t think Cass would feel comfortable with that. He’d probably rather have strangers do it." Edgar commented, while Gideon, the knight, finally let go of his towel, crossing his arms in disagreement as he widened his stance. The towel stayed up. Of course it did. The towel was on the body of a man who was trying to have a serious conversation.

"I completely disagree with the direction that you’re going, Edgar. Again, it’s dangerous. We can’t trust the others with Cass’ health and safety. Wasn’t that the whole reason why you wanted me involved?" Gideon sounded seriously upset, and Cass was a little surprised. So, he had some idea as to why he was being brought in, especially after reading the story that he had. Gideon wasn’t fully in the dark, but it was also clear that he hadn’t fully understood everything.

At least, not yet.

"Well, yes, but...you’re not there yet, Gideon." Edgar told him. It was obvious since the man was still getting used to everything. "We don’t want to rush you. I don’t want to rush you. I was ready from the jump, but you aren’t me. Plus, you’re a human. I can’t keep up with him, only a dragon can. What makes you think that you can? You might even hurt him." Edgar commented.

Cass watched the two friends, er, more than friends argue. Over him. He watched as Gideon’s jaw tightened.

"We don’t know that until we try, and it’s not fair to use my inexperience and my shyness against me right now. I’m doing the best that I can right now, and it’s unfair to bring that up as a reason that I can’t be of use. I like to help people, and Lucian wanted me to be one of the people who look after you. Using the fact that I’m human against me is also rude. Cass is also human, and you started out human too." Gideon pointed out. Edgar’s eyes widened and he swallowed. For a minute, the air was heavy, before Edgar sighed.

His expression softened, his eyes warming.

"I’m sorry. That wasn’t very nice of me. I shouldn’t have brought up the fact that you’re human as an excuse that you can’t keep up with him, but I’m also serious about this. Cass is a force of nature. He’s starving, Gideon, and if we try to feed him every day, we might die." Edgar told him. Gideon glanced at Cass, his green gaze serious.

"What if we feed him a little bit every day? Wouldn’t that help him? That might even counteract how bad his heat might be in the future. We don’t truly know the cause of his heat outside of the fact that he’s starving. If he eats enough to sustain himself, he might have a less harsh heat." Gideon shrugged. "He might even stop going into heat." That was a pipe dream if Cass ever heard it.

Getting enough semen so that he didn’t have to go into heat? What a dream. Cass almost wanted to believe what Gideon was saying, but even Edgar had a skeptical look on his face.

"Gideon...don’t you think that was what Lucy was trying?" Edgar asked and Gideon sighed.

"Yeah, I know that he was trying, but you said it yourself. Cass was starving. He was bound to need a lot up front. I mean, just look at him. He doesn’t look like a corpse anymore, right? He even has some muscle now." Gideon said, motioning his head in Cass’ direction as he looked him over.

Cass was a little offended that he called him a corpse.

"Hey. I wasn’t a corpse." Cass protested. "I was just...sickly." He wasn’t sure if that was better, but he couldn’t exactly call himself a Victorian child because they wouldn’t get the reference.

Even Edgar was giving him a slightly pitying look.

"I wasn’t a corpse. My cheeks weren’t completely sunken. Sam was doing his best." Cass protested and both Gideon and Edgar nodded.

"I agree. Sam was doing his best, and now it’s our turn to help out as well." Edgar replied, then slid his gaze towards Gideon. "Gideon...are you sure you know what helping Cass actually entails? I mean, we’ve spoken a bit about it, but-" Gideon’s face turned bright red. He cleared his throat, cutting off Edgar.

He shifted his stance, his legs widening slightly as he gathered himself. It was truly more of a soldier’s stance then anything else, and it was tempting the towel. Cass could see how it was slipping slightly, Gideon’s mind elsewhere. Cass glanced at Edgar, seeing if he was watching it too, but Edgar was more focused on the topic at hand, not the chance that Gideon would be as naked as they were.

"I am aware." Gideon said stiffly. "I’ve been brushing up on my knowledge of how two men lay together." Gideon’s gaze slid to Cass, his cheeks flaming. "The book Cass lent me was also a good help." He admitted, his cheeks flushed. Edgar gave a soft breath, his shoulders relaxing. Edgar patted Cass’ thigh thoughtlessly, just doing an action so that he could.

"Oh, well, that’s good. I think. So, you understand that you would have to ejaculate several times a day to feed Cass what he needs and that I would have to do the same? If we don’t outsource to others, that’s what we have to do." Edgar told him. Gideon looked like he wanted the ground to swallow him up, he was so embarrassed.

Cass wanted to speak, wanted to take some of that embarrassment away, but he also knew that it wouldn’t help in the long run.

It was fucking embarrassing to admit, out loud, that Cass needed semen to survive. Edgar didn’t think so, but he was a man who survived on a different kind of life essence. He’d also come to terms with that a long time ago, while Cass was practically still staring down the barrel of the shotgun of that discovery.

Cass could truly sympathize with how Gideon was feeling about all this. While Cass wasn’t as uptight as Gideon was, and he’d had a far better sexual education when compared to Gideon, it wasn’t like either one of them had been sexually active before now.

"I can understand that." Gideon told him, his face turning even more red. Cass was almost worried for the man. He might pass out if too much blood rushed around his body. "I was uneducated, not stupid." Gideon defended and Edgar smiled. He squeezed Cass’ thigh.

"Of course. I know you aren’t stupid. I should kick those damn priests for excluding sexual education. My guess it was my father’s petty way to keep the priests separate from the other business that the Vespertine family runs." Edgar commented, bitter. "No matter. You understand that. So the next question becomes...are you prepared to do it?" Edgar asked. Gideon slid his gaze to Cass, his face burning, before he turned his gaze back to Edgar.

"I won’t lie and say that I am fully confident. I’ve never...outside of dreams, I’ve never done such acts." Gideon told them seriously. It was a quiet admittance, one that had Edgar’s eyes light up. Cass had seen that expression before, and he was the one who reached out and stopped Edgar from jumping Gideon’s bones.

"You’ve never touched yourself before?" Cass asked, holding Edgar back and also covering his mouth. Edgar fought against Cass, usually able to fight against him. Usually, Edgar was the stronger of the two, but Cass wasn’t playing fair.

He was using magic to hold him back. Something in his gut told him that it was the right call. If he let Edgar touch Gideon before Gideon had touched himself? That felt like a line that shouldn’t be crossed.

Everyone should be allowed to touch themselves first.

Cass felt his face warm as he was reminded of how Lucian had helped him the first time. Lucian had let him lead that moment, even if he had been with him the whole time. Cass felt like he would have panicked and never done it otherwise.

"But you can get hard, right? While not asleep?" Cass asked. He knew that was true, but he needed Gideon to acknowledge it too. Gideon glanced away from Cass, staring at the curtains. He swallowed thickly.

"I can get hard." He muttered. Cass nodded.

"Good. My suggestion, before you volunteer yourself to be a part of my feeding team, is to figure yourself out first. Don’t let Edgar or I touch you before you’ve touched yourself. We might tease you and kiss you, but I think it’s important for you to know your body first." Cass told him seriously.

Edgar finally pulled Cass’ hand away from his mouth, sputtering.

"Says the man who didn’t touch himself before Lucian and I got my hands on you." Edgar scoffed and Cass stared at him. Then he furrowed his brows.

"Why do you think that’s the case?" Cass asked, tilting his head slightly. Edgar, who had been so confident, so self assured, hesitated. Gideon’s green gaze widened.

"B-But you-" Edgar cut off as Cass stared at him silently. "But you’re a virgin." Edgar whispered and Cass gave a heavy sigh.

"Edgar, you saw the types of tools I asked for from the Doctor. I’m sure you are aware of what they do as well. Even if I am a sex demon with that kind of blood in my veins, it’s not like the asshole is something that things go in and out of easily like that without practice and care, right?" Cass couldn’t believe he was having this kind of conversation with Edgar of all people.

Edgar looked like he was having a revelation, and he wasn’t sure if he liked it or not.

"Edgar, I’m a virgin, and I haven’t dated people, but it’s not like I wasn’t curious. I knew I liked men, so wouldn’t it be a pretty obvious thing for me to consider touching myself? Gideon excluded, that’s what most people do." Cass told him and Edgar swallowed. He glanced down Cass’ body, before pulling his gaze back to Cass’ gaze.

"I’m sorry. I should have assumed that, I just. I never considered Lord Blackburn as the kind of person who would." He admitted. Cass felt his lips twitch.

"Yeah, he didn’t, because I think he knew subconsciously what kind of world that would open up to him. He had more self control. I, however, am a degenerate who reads romance novels where the main character has a tentacle kink. We are not the same." Cass told him.

Gideon nearly choked.

"You have a book like that?" He asked, equal parts horrified and curious. Cass shot him a cheeky grin.

"Not in this world, Gideon. Sorry."