Ryo was content enough to eat his sweet treats in silence, glad that he wouldn't end up with a stomachache, as the average person might from eating nothing but a pile of surgery goodness. For one, the god was simply pleased that he was out with Prosper, and didn't want to push it more than that, at this very moment, so matching the other's pace and flow was fine. Secondly, he wasn't even certain what he
should talk about. It seemed strange to volunteer too many details, if Prosper didn't care to know, but small talk about the weather or some such wasn't ideal, either.
He had been mid sip of his champagne when he heard Prosper's hushed voice, and Ryo lowered his glass from his lips as he swallowed the sweet drink down. He didn't say anything at first, only waiting for the other man to continue and, when he did, there was a hint of sadness within Ryo's eyes.
"Jiro? Was it not obvious? He's dying." Though, strangely, Ryo said this as a matter of fact without any faltering in his voice, so different from his gaze. His identical twin brother
was dying. He'd
been dying, for some years now. The god may have glanced up at Prosper at first, but now his eyes were on the glass of champagne, which he gently swirled around in his hand.
"If we said that, last night, I had one foot in the grave, it would be most appropriate to say that Jiro was already buried alive in the grave, about to breathe his last breath before suffocating.""I've been keeping him alive all this time, for the last decade or so, sacrificing my own energy, but nearly at the cost of my own life. The exchange rate is too high, with very little pay off. It takes almost everything that I have, just to keep him hanging on by a thread."At no point did Ryo speak all too loudly, just enough for Prosper to hear him, without others intruding too much on their conversation.