[It would be impossible to ignore a look like Dextera is giving him now. He holds his gaze for a few solid seconds before it's too much, and then he's closing his eyes and looking down to hide his own smile, also embarrassingly fond.
Well, tonight turned out better than expected. Even one day like that is unexpected, but it seems like there are more and more. If it's not any of the others caring for him, wanting to make sure he's eaten, nagging him, calling him sensei, then it's Dextera, helping him relax. Playing chess with him. Being his friend.
He crosses one leg over the other and leans back. Really, he can't think of anything to say. It'd all be fillers for the silence, anyway, and he thinks this silence is a little comfortable, even if he is embarrassed. It's fine, as long as attention isn't being drawn to it. They can enjoy each other's company and wait for the soup.]
dextera isn't all that surprised that it turns out better than most things he puts in his mouth—the vegetables are homegrown and lovingly tended to, and making it together made sure that the broth was seasoned with love the bias of hard work. it's a warm meal that relaxes dextera's whole body, and when all is said and done, he looks like he could gladly just curl up and go to sleep.
if a few bowls of soup could do this to him, it's probably painfully obvious that his diet does not normally consist of hot, filling food. ]
[Guren has just taken care of both of their bowls, since he refuses to leave dirty dishes for Ignis to take care of even if washing is a pain with no running water. With those set aside and everything cleaned up, he's really feeling relaxed, himself. That wasn't too bad! Which is good, since he wants to encourage Dextera to eat.
He moves over to where he is, now, like he needs to be close to speak to him. The house is still so quiet, so maybe that's it. His hand hovers near Dextera's back... he's hoverhanding, stop him.]
[ the hoverhanding is a part of their friendship rituals and it should never stop. dextera can feel guren's hand close to his back, though, and that gets him to look up from where he'd been sleepily drooping over the table, back at guren.
he wishes guren would just touch him! but a question is fine too. ]
...
[ he nods. all of it is good—the food, the quiet, guren's company. things are great. ]
[At that nod, his hand moves closer to touch. It's light, a gentle nudge for Dextera to move with him.]
Come on. Do you have an extra blanket or something? [This may be the first time he's Planning on staying the night, instead of just accidentally falling asleep leaning next to Dextera.]
I don't mind sleeping directly on the floor, but it'd help to have something to cover up with.
[ dextera nods again. even though all of his supplies seem to go to leliel, there are a few extra blankets in the house—maybe because it was intended to house people who spend a lot of time on the water, so blankets are more useful to have than mattresses.
he stands, taking some of the vegetable scraps from their meal with him before drifting upstairs with a motion for guren to follow him.
tonight, guren will get his wish of seeing leliel sleeping on dextera, because that’s just the life dex lives with his chicken!! and if he wants, he can feed the precious girl some potato peels or something. ]
[Guren absolutely wants to feed Leliel? And see her sleep on Dextera? He's going to be so fond it's going to explode out of him, but he'll hide his face in the blanket(s) they're grabbing now.
So, a quick grab of some blankets, setting them out on the floor, and then even Guren is crouching when he finds Leliel, bringing his fingers curiously to the side of her neck to stroke her. She soft. Like a child, he can't admit that he wants to feed her, but he still does...]
I can't believe you have a chicken for a roommate.
[ dextera loves his chicken roommate. she’s relatively quiet, except for the clucking, and she always seems to be able to pick up on his moods—she’s a good distraction, when he would otherwise be left terribly alone with his thoughts.
watching guren pet her, he taps guren’s arm with his free hand, to get his attention. ]
...
[ he holds out a few of the scraps, and leliel’s interest is immediately diverted from guren’s petting to the vegetables in dextera’s hand. she’s gonna just... get those...
[Wait... If he takes the veggies will the chicken love him?? Well, she will love the food in his hand and he knows this, but still. With Dextera, silence is completely fine sometimes, so he doesn't even need to say anything when he holds his hand out expectantly. Give him some to feed the chicken.]
[ leliel does not understand what’s happening when dextera pulls his hand away to exchange vegetables, and it quite literally ruffles her feathers, as she pecks at the fleshy part of his palm to try to get them back. ]
Heh.
[ dextera laughs softly, thoroughly unbothered by her pecking. as soon as she realizes that the scraps have simply changed hands, however, she calms—and as expected, she shoves her feathery face against guren’s stash now. ]
[It's... fun, somehow. He blinks, quiet, focused, as Leliel moves over to his hand next. He holds it for her, watches, and his other hand moves to pet her gently as she goes. Just like this, there's something relaxing about it. He can't believe he's just... sitting here, feeding a chicken. A house chicken. It's ridiculous.
But it's a kind of ridiculous that he appreciates very much, and his whole person seems to be more relaxed in general. He's calm, he's a little sleepy, and he's letting Leliel have veggie scraps.
He almost forgets where he is, but Dextera's presence beside him is something he remembers shortly after. The warmth, he can feel, even with some distance between them, and he's fond of that, as well. It seems to fit. He looks over, and finally breaks his intense focus with a little smirk.]
I told you you're the one that's going to make her fat.
[ dextera was enjoying himself quite a lot, watching guren feed his chicken, since they’re both beloved in different ways and anyone would be warmed watching their two favorite living things bond like this—but then guren goes and ruins it with that sly little comment! ]
—?
[ dextera shakes his head quickly, defensive, like he can’t believe that guren would insinuate that all over again! she’s fine, isn’t she? he can take her for walks, and it’ll all be okay.
(will chickens go on walks? he doesn’t know.)
he scoots her a little closer to himself, but of course her head strains to try to continue getting those veggies. ]
[Again, a little laugh escapes, more genuine than he usually allows out. He can't help it. He's relaxed, and teasing Dextera will always be fun. Now, he has to scoot closer to Dextera, too, so he can keep giving Leliel those veggies. Little by little!]
dextera doesn’t want to stop spoiling her, though—as long as he has the power to give something a good life, why wouldn’t he? he’s less offended than he appears to be, and it’s really the drama in his expression that makes it clear he’s not that upset.
she pecks until she starts to slow down, but because she’s a chicken, she doesn’t actually stop—dextera has to gently nudge her head away from guren’s hand, and they can save the rest of the scraps for her breakfast tomorrow.
[ Aww, look, Dextera is a good chicken daddy after all. He knows to tell her to stop! Guren gets that this means he should put the scraps away, but he doesn’t want to get up, so he reaches over and slips his hand into one of Dextera’s pockets, shamelessly dropping them off there. He can take care of that!! ]
Feeling tired at all? [ Guren is, but he’s also oddly energized... It’s strange. He’s mostly wondering if it’s just him. ]
[ more telling of their comfort levels with each other than guren reaching into dextera’s pocket in the first place is that dextera doesn’t stop him. worse things have been in there than veggie scraps, and now that they’re out of sight for the chicken, they’re out of mind as well. ]
...
[ dextera nods, but he looks more awake than he did when they first walked up here. he shifts so leliel is sitting in his lap, even though he knows the chances are good that they’re going to settle down to bed soon.
he wishes he could speak, if only for keeping a light conversation going while they’re here together. ]
[ Guren, meanwhile, is fine with Dextera’s silence. He doesn’t mind it at all, and body language and expressions tell him enough. Dextera is comfortable. Guren pets Leliel once more before he shifts back, lying down over his blanket pile with a sigh. He still needs to take his jacket off, but he’ll get to that slowly... ]
A lot of the time I only manage to get in naps here and there. Taking care of kids is a full time job. [ Stop Guren ]
[ well, dextera thought it was funny. guren does spend a lot of time looking after the town's younger residents, although it worries him that that often comes at the price of his own health. dextera is glad to be a respite for guren, and even if guren came over without saying anything, without making conversation, just to sleep—that would be okay, dextera thinks.
he's just happy to have the company.
so in an attempt to encourage guren to sleep while they can still make good time, dextera lets leliel hop out of his lap as he, too, makes his way over to the blanket pile. it seems more comfortable, with guren there, and dextera is soon settling next to him, on his stomach, since that seems to be the position he naturally assumes when given the chance.
—the wings made it impossible to lie on his back—
but he's forgetting about that little memory before he even recognizes it, and he folds his arms under his chin while leliel tries to decide where she wants to go. ]
Dextera is over here, next to him, and that surprises Guren when it probably shouldn’t. He knows they’ve slept next to each other before. His tired drifting off next to him, or settling in front of the fireplace and waiting for the shadows to leave. But this feels different, somehow, and he’s left quietly blinking his surprise back.
It’s not... bad, it’s just... he’s so cold and rude and grumpy, but Dextera’s still doing this. Guren can’t get out any words to tell him to give him space, either. So, he sits up just enough to unbutton his jacket and sets that aside somewhere, tossing another glance to Dextera before he lies down. He’s thinking about this too much, he’s sure...
[ dextera doesn't see anything wrong with this, true to the person that he is. he's happy, next to guren. there was never a part of him that thought he wasn't going to sleep right here with him, as if taking a bed was never even an option. it's become easier to sleep on the floor, anyway, when he's trying to make it convenient for his chicken to come and go as she pleases.
not that he wasn't already sleeping on the floor, but now he has an excuse. ]
...?
[ he does spare a curious glance guren's way, but his gaze is interrupted by the chicken deciding to place herself in the warmest spot in the room—between two bodies, in the small amount of space that dextera allowed for modesty. he's distracted from wondering what has guren so quiet, in shifting slightly to accommodate her. ]
[ And now poor, unaware Dextera is going to get a face full of the blanket meant to cover them. He doesn’t bother yanking it up for any actual cover right now, just balls it a little and pushes it at Dextera’s face. The chicken was the last straw! She’s so cute! ]
what happened? what did he do? leliel seems only mildly shocked by the assault, but dextera looks at guren, in disbelief. guren lashes out sometimes, like this, but dextera can usually track why he’s embarrassed or angry about something.
[Well, Guren won't look back at Dextera, so that's the first clue that this is embarrassment, and not anger. There's also no follow up or explanation which his anger always gives... He likes to yell when he's angry.
This, though? He's done. It's like nothing happened, almost, aside from a slightly huffy expression, and he's waiting for Dextera to unball that blanket so they can actually use it.]
Try to get some sleep. [And he's saying nice, concerned things...??]
[ dextera is still confused, but he’s forced to let it go, he supposes... even now, it doesn’t occur to him that guren would be embarrassed that dextera is this close, lying next to him.
he exhales quietly, amused, and settles down. even if guren won’t look at him, he’s looking at guren. leliel settles between them again, facing dextera, her breathing turned to a light whistling snore.
[Even if he's being like this... Guren stays facing Dextera on his side, not wanting to shift so much that he disturbs Leliel's position. He steals one more glance at Dextera before he intends to sleep, and seeing him looking right back is enough to get him to close his eyes.
His mind is just in too many places right now. That's all. He's sure that's it.
It doesn't take long for him to fall asleep. It's cold, here in these types of houses, and on the floor especially, but the blankets and his company help. It makes him want to move closer, and though his sleeping mind won't let him do any drastic movements to fix this, his hand does stretch out in the middle of his sleep, fingers curling in front of Dextera's chest, close enough to brush against him.
He's pretty much still aside from that, and this time there's no muttering or mumbling while he sleeps. Only the sound of him snoring softly. Which is good! It means he's actually resting.]
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Well, tonight turned out better than expected. Even one day like that is unexpected, but it seems like there are more and more. If it's not any of the others caring for him, wanting to make sure he's eaten, nagging him, calling him sensei, then it's Dextera, helping him relax. Playing chess with him. Being his friend.
He crosses one leg over the other and leans back. Really, he can't think of anything to say. It'd all be fillers for the silence, anyway, and he thinks this silence is a little comfortable, even if he is embarrassed. It's fine, as long as attention isn't being drawn to it. They can enjoy each other's company and wait for the soup.]
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dextera isn't all that surprised that it turns out better than most things he puts in his mouth—the vegetables are homegrown and lovingly tended to, and making it together made sure that the broth was seasoned with
lovethe bias of hard work. it's a warm meal that relaxes dextera's whole body, and when all is said and done, he looks like he could gladly just curl up and go to sleep.if a few bowls of soup could do this to him, it's probably painfully obvious that his diet does not normally consist of hot, filling food. ]
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He moves over to where he is, now, like he needs to be close to speak to him. The house is still so quiet, so maybe that's it. His hand hovers near Dextera's back... he's hoverhanding, stop him.]
Good?
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he wishes guren would just touch him! but a question is fine too. ]
...
[ he nods. all of it is good—the food, the quiet, guren's company. things are great. ]
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Come on. Do you have an extra blanket or something? [This may be the first time he's Planning on staying the night, instead of just accidentally falling asleep leaning next to Dextera.]
I don't mind sleeping directly on the floor, but it'd help to have something to cover up with.
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he stands, taking some of the vegetable scraps from their meal with him before drifting upstairs with a motion for guren to follow him.
tonight, guren will get his wish of seeing leliel sleeping on dextera, because that’s just the life dex lives with his chicken!! and if he wants, he can feed the precious girl some potato peels or something. ]
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So, a quick grab of some blankets, setting them out on the floor, and then even Guren is crouching when he finds Leliel, bringing his fingers curiously to the side of her neck to stroke her. She soft. Like a child, he can't admit that he wants to feed her, but he still does...]
I can't believe you have a chicken for a roommate.
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watching guren pet her, he taps guren’s arm with his free hand, to get his attention. ]
...
[ he holds out a few of the scraps, and leliel’s interest is immediately diverted from guren’s petting to the vegetables in dextera’s hand. she’s gonna just... get those...
the hungriest chicken. ]
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Heh.
[ dextera laughs softly, thoroughly unbothered by her pecking. as soon as she realizes that the scraps have simply changed hands, however, she calms—and as expected, she shoves her feathery face against guren’s stash now. ]
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But it's a kind of ridiculous that he appreciates very much, and his whole person seems to be more relaxed in general. He's calm, he's a little sleepy, and he's letting Leliel have veggie scraps.
He almost forgets where he is, but Dextera's presence beside him is something he remembers shortly after. The warmth, he can feel, even with some distance between them, and he's fond of that, as well. It seems to fit. He looks over, and finally breaks his intense focus with a little smirk.]
I told you you're the one that's going to make her fat.
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—?
[ dextera shakes his head quickly, defensive, like he can’t believe that guren would insinuate that all over again! she’s fine, isn’t she? he can take her for walks, and it’ll all be okay.
(will chickens go on walks? he doesn’t know.)
he scoots her a little closer to himself, but of course her head strains to try to continue getting those veggies. ]
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Look at her. She's spoiled.
[It's great.]
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[ she’s not. (she is.)
dextera doesn’t want to stop spoiling her, though—as long as he has the power to give something a good life, why wouldn’t he? he’s less offended than he appears to be, and it’s really the drama in his expression that makes it clear he’s not that upset.
she pecks until she starts to slow down, but because she’s a chicken, she doesn’t actually stop—dextera has to gently nudge her head away from guren’s hand, and they can save the rest of the scraps for her breakfast tomorrow.
he pats the top of her head. ]
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Feeling tired at all? [ Guren is, but he’s also oddly energized... It’s strange. He’s mostly wondering if it’s just him. ]
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...
[ dextera nods, but he looks more awake than he did when they first walked up here. he shifts so leliel is sitting in his lap, even though he knows the chances are good that they’re going to settle down to bed soon.
he wishes he could speak, if only for keeping a light conversation going while they’re here together. ]
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[ Guren, meanwhile, is fine with Dextera’s silence. He doesn’t mind it at all, and body language and expressions tell him enough. Dextera is comfortable. Guren pets Leliel once more before he shifts back, lying down over his blanket pile with a sigh. He still needs to take his jacket off, but he’ll get to that slowly... ]
A lot of the time I only manage to get in naps here and there. Taking care of kids is a full time job. [ Stop Guren ]
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[ well, dextera thought it was funny. guren does spend a lot of time looking after the town's younger residents, although it worries him that that often comes at the price of his own health. dextera is glad to be a respite for guren, and even if guren came over without saying anything, without making conversation, just to sleep—that would be okay, dextera thinks.
he's just happy to have the company.
so in an attempt to encourage guren to sleep while they can still make good time, dextera lets leliel hop out of his lap as he, too, makes his way over to the blanket pile. it seems more comfortable, with guren there, and dextera is soon settling next to him, on his stomach, since that seems to be the position he naturally assumes when given the chance.
—the wings made it impossible to lie on his back—
but he's forgetting about that little memory before he even recognizes it, and he folds his arms under his chin while leliel tries to decide where she wants to go. ]
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Dextera is over here, next to him, and that surprises Guren when it probably shouldn’t. He knows they’ve slept next to each other before. His tired drifting off next to him, or settling in front of the fireplace and waiting for the shadows to leave. But this feels different, somehow, and he’s left quietly blinking his surprise back.
It’s not... bad, it’s just... he’s so cold and rude and grumpy, but Dextera’s still doing this. Guren can’t get out any words to tell him to give him space, either. So, he sits up just enough to unbutton his jacket and sets that aside somewhere, tossing another glance to Dextera before he lies down. He’s thinking about this too much, he’s sure...
And so he’s quiet again. ]
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not that he wasn't already sleeping on the floor, but now he has an excuse. ]
...?
[ he does spare a curious glance guren's way, but his gaze is interrupted by the chicken deciding to place herself in the warmest spot in the room—between two bodies, in the small amount of space that dextera allowed for modesty. he's distracted from wondering what has guren so quiet, in shifting slightly to accommodate her. ]
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[ And now poor, unaware Dextera is going to get a face full of the blanket meant to cover them. He doesn’t bother yanking it up for any actual cover right now, just balls it a little and pushes it at Dextera’s face. The chicken was the last straw! She’s so cute! ]
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[ WHY
what happened? what did he do? leliel seems only mildly shocked by the assault, but dextera looks at guren, in disbelief. guren lashes out sometimes, like this, but dextera can usually track why he’s embarrassed or angry about something.
this one caught him off guard! ]
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This, though? He's done. It's like nothing happened, almost, aside from a slightly huffy expression, and he's waiting for Dextera to unball that blanket so they can actually use it.]
Try to get some sleep. [And he's saying nice, concerned things...??]
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[ dextera is still confused, but he’s forced to let it go, he supposes... even now, it doesn’t occur to him that guren would be embarrassed that dextera is this close, lying next to him.
he exhales quietly, amused, and settles down. even if guren won’t look at him, he’s looking at guren. leliel settles between them again, facing dextera, her breathing turned to a light whistling snore.
he’ll sleep. ]
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[Even if he's being like this... Guren stays facing Dextera on his side, not wanting to shift so much that he disturbs Leliel's position. He steals one more glance at Dextera before he intends to sleep, and seeing him looking right back is enough to get him to close his eyes.
His mind is just in too many places right now. That's all. He's sure that's it.
It doesn't take long for him to fall asleep. It's cold, here in these types of houses, and on the floor especially, but the blankets and his company help. It makes him want to move closer, and though his sleeping mind won't let him do any drastic movements to fix this, his hand does stretch out in the middle of his sleep, fingers curling in front of Dextera's chest, close enough to brush against him.
He's pretty much still aside from that, and this time there's no muttering or mumbling while he sleeps. Only the sound of him snoring softly. Which is good! It means he's actually resting.]
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