Funk's low purr reverberated through the air. He couldn't have helped but be surprised when Sean suggested this, when he came all this way to help the Nemesis prepare for the wedding. Was he suspicious? Mildly. It seemed like every time they were supposed to move farther away from each other, one or the other always went to the effort of bridging the gap. Things only made less sense the more days went by, it definitely kept him entertained.

The ends of his lips twitched at the compliment. “I guess I'll take your word for it. Maybe you should have married me when you had the chance.” He laughed quietly, his tone light like he was joking but his gaze anything but. Funk would say it was for suspicions, but he watched Sean intently, drinking each action in before he went on to the next.

Funk nodded along with the plan, claws peaking out as Sean massaged his paw. “Hmmph, they are as aligned as ever, I s'pose.”

Was he joking? Was he completely serious? Was it just a pipedream after learning that Chimerastar pronounced his name "ch-im" and not "khime" like a normal cat and that tv show lied to him? Funk wasn't sure. Even if he toyed with the idea, it was too late now. They were far too different, two different worlds could only merge together so well. "T's a shame, that all. I 'preciate you doin' this either way."

Was he in a funk? Probably. He should have asked for the chakra treatment, whatever it involved. He kept using all the busywork of the wedding preparation to keep himself from thinking about it. But now, sitting here in the quiet made those worries worm back into his mind. The Nemesis gently lowered himself into the bath as Sean pushed the crate in front of the door. So that's why those cats complained about some white cat staring at them in the black market? He chuckled, resting his head on the tub's edge. "This is good. I'll let go of the Pisces thing long as you don't tell anyone I'm a Cancer." Funk purred, though the humor in his voice had dampened.

Funk wasn't sure if he should talk, and definitely knew he shouldn't pull Sean into this bath. But he was tempted. Even with his cheeks being smushed in this and that direction, he laughed a little at the horoscope. That was just another string, huh? "Heh heh. I can't be surprised by that anymore." Even the stars wouldn't let that friendship die. How humorous.

But if he was good at keeping secrets, maybe Funk should just talk about what was on his mind. Sean has had a couple mates, basically married to Shule even though he knew he wouldn't be invited to that wedding. He wasn't fully convinced, actually dealing with his emotions in a constructive way was not his go-to. So, he was almost relieved when Sean changed the subject. "Yep. Senescence and Lucistic were there, and Luc made it a whole show of telling me what happened. I would have given a life to see Littlestar fall from that tree myself." The Nemesis practically jumped into those waters, his tone cheerful despite the morbid words. It was no secret to most of Primal Instinct, that despite his soon to be wife leading it at one point, Funk held no love for Sunclan. They were never any fun to talk to, his snobby son was set to lead it one day, and he still hadn't forgotten about the incident with Innocentia. He'd have to do something about it. "Besides, it sounds like the Sun God deserved it. We're all bad here, but we at least don't do that. Whether you take my word for it or not is up to you." He was so relaxed he decided not to lean into that conversation again. "What about you? What do you think of it?"

(On mobile so I’ll edit this later)

Looks like that was the right response. Especially as Sean went off on his tangent. A bit they could agree on. Funk vaguely remembered Sean's leadership from when he... time traveled. But he only saw one evening, that mostly told him how paws off Sean was. But he didn't question it much, letting himself relax into the bath and massage. "Let's be honest here. He got away with it for so long because Autumn isn't one of Little's kits. As long as the Sun God stayed away from her family, I doubt she cared." Funk laughed lowly at that. But was he wrong? He'd seen nothing to prove himself wrong. The Nemesis could have guessed there had been enough hostility between them for Little to turn a blind eye. Not that he was really paying attention to things like the repercussions for the Era of Shadows. "Let's keep that bit between us though. Probably best not to stir the pot right before this wedding." Funk knew, but just saying it out loud solidified it. It was real, and was happening. 

His gaze flicked upwards as Sean tested his fur, shrugging at the criticism. It was true, there was no way he could deny it. Hearts were a cruel thing to toy with, but also one of the most fun. But Funk kept that tidbit to himself. "I appreciate that, really." Not that Funk was very convinced it was true. I mean, it was Glowstar. Did anyone really deserve her? Was that just another slight at her and him from Sean? He wasn't sure. Chuckling at the tease, he found himself trying to stay close so Sean didn't stretch as much but also tempted to drift away just to see if he'd fall in. "Fine, I won't argue with you on it. But I can't deny my hesitation. This is the first time I've tried something like this." 

It must have been in his nature to doubt. It just didn't make sense. Getting married as the solution to a fear of falling in love? Who said he was afraid? Was it him? It started to dawn on Funk how he may never understand Sean, the other's ways simply far too alien to him. Even with everything he said, the Nemesis had a hard time believing any of it. Blinking as a drop of coconut milk flew into his eye, Funk shook his head. Bubbles floated to the surface as he exhaled. "Flattery will only get you so far here. You realize all these fluffy fuzzy feelings are foreign to me, no? Call me getting cold feet or whatever, but I don't see how getting married will help that... hesitance." He wasn't gonna call it fear; not in front of Sean, not when he wasn't sure what fear felt like.

Despite the reluctance, he slowly stepped out of the pool. Shaking each paw to keep the floor from getting soaked, he didn't bother to question how Sean supposedly knew. Whatever opportunity he got to talk to his soon to be brother in law was worth it. That heart thing was entirely untrue. Funk laid down in the sun, not without flicking some of the leftover drops on Sean. "Besides, you're pretty hot too. And you can give me whatever you want."

Really, Sean didn't even need to bother getting on his nerves in some other way. Tripping him, scalding him, the likes that were so easy now would have been trivial compared to what he did. For the whole time he spoke, Funk forced himself to watch Sean, not take his eyes off. Search the other for any sort of smirk, a flash of amusement in his eyes, anything that said he was kidding. Cause that's what it had to be; a joke. But neither of them laughed. It was frustrating, his world darkened briefly.

And he was the first one to crack a smirk. "Spent a while thinking that one up, huh?" Nah, he wouldn't let himself believe a word of it. The stones were cool on his eyes, too much so as Funk stretched to keep them balanced. Thus showing off that scar more, that chink in the armor he despised. "But look where that's got you. You're here pampering me, the kind of cat you hate most." They were cut from the same cloth, but their patterns different. Lies got him here, and the supposed truth got Sean here. It wasn't like Funk needed to spell out the insecurities about Sean's sort of lifestyle. They both knew. "Besides, I can give that sort of flattery all I want, doesn't change the whole cold feet deal."

Funk couldn't, thankfully for Sean. Maybe he ended up giving Sean wanted, he couldn't have known either way. For now, he was satisfied with his defense, happy to push his own agenda on another's words. He couldn't help the bark of a laugh from leaving him at the question. "Please. You try and find someone who won't blab to Foxbane or Glowstar about those doubts then get back to me. Most will tell them just to try and cancel the wedding." Even Funk couldn't help noticing the slight mood shift once cats learned of the engagement. Especially from the kids.

Funk listened, trying to hold still enough to pick at that one hair that was rubbing him the wrong way. He knew Sean was observant, had spent more time with them and all that. Con of being the youngest. But it felt strange to be getting told about your fiances from someone else. Funk should have known, and sure some pieces he had, but not the whole picture. And now it only felt like he had a few more, still quite a few holes in each puzzle. "Exactly. You grew up in it, you're accustomed to it. If your mind did break, it was broken when you were young, then warped to what the Regime wanted." He said with a half shrug, more matter of fact than teasing. "Not that we're much better." He added with a laugh.

The offer was tempting. Not like this was gonna be his last chance to hit the town, but it'd be different after the marriage. He'd always been free, able to follow his whims and fancies to their limits. Now he had a limit, the scariest part was that he was the one that put it there. "You are as generous as ever, Sentinel. Not that I think it will help much." Funk would hate to admit that just talking about it helped more. He knew what kind of cat he was, knew that he was the crocodile that would jump on the gazelle cause he was close to the bank.

Well, Funk knew of at least one of those cats. It was hard to even approach Dayclan without having heard of Deal. Kutsu was a complete stranger, but he guessed if these cats could stand to hang out with Sean, he would be nothing. "What sort of things are you even able to do at the Regime anyway? I figure you guys just work all the time. And when you're not working, you're sleeping." Funk asked as he rolled over to his other side, a genuine curiosity in his tone. Did he care completely? No. But with the way things were going, it was gonna be in his best interest to befriend the regime. Maybe finally establish that trade route he had been thinking about and not just stealing their scraps.

"That's a good assessment on your part. If I were you, I wouldn't give me a chance." He never gave anyone a chance. This was the biggest gamble of his life, and the needle was still between the jackpot and bankrupt. Funk still couldn't tell if it was a good idea. But... some part of him, very much buried under a lot of spite, appreciated the chance. "Fine, I'll say it once. Thanks for listening. So how much gore can you and your buddies take? We can find something less... violent, though it may take a bit of walking."