Chapter Text
The tattoo on Jamil's foot hurts. It hurts a lot. It hurts when he walks and it hurts during basketball practice and it hurts when he dances. The first few days actually threw him off-balance with the constant throb and ache and swelling. Floyd was insufferable about it, also, pulling Jamil around as if he had no idea when he clearly did. The one time he does address that he knows why Jamil's foot hurts is when he decides to just sweep Jamil up in his arms, bump foreheads with him and gives him a sloppy kiss on the cheek. Then he practically drops Jamil and turns to saunter off. Jamil had unhooked a bangle from his hair to throw at Floyd which, somehow, the eel had spun on his heel and caught before waving and actually walking off. Jamil isn't sure if it's worse that Floyd's step seems peppier and self-satisfied as he leaves or that his face is hot enough he's forgotten the ache in his foot.
"Jamil-san." While Floyd always announces himself with his footsteps (unless he's doing something even shadier than usual) Jade always seems to simply step out of the shadows. Jamil isn't sure if Jade has felt on the bottom of his shoes or simply a light step but it's unnerving. Not as unnerving as Jade's smile which is laser targeted on Jamil at the moment.
"Jade. What do you want?" Jamil frowns. Jade doesn't seek people out, typically. Jade is the kind of person who happens to be at the table you sit down at lunch for, he he happens to have the extra ink you need for the exam or he happens to have the wood polish for your broom. So when he seeks people out it's usually assignment from Azul or, worse, personal interest. Also, Jamil has a hard time reading Jade, unlike Floyd who is incredibly just maximum Floyd at all times Jade is. . .
. . . technically Jade is just maximum Jade at all times but Jamil still finds that harder to predict than maximum Floyd.
Jade tips his head and bows, just a little tilt of his waist. Not too polite but polite enough to make casual school conversation feel awkward. "I simply am greeting a fellow student."
"I find that hard to believe." Jamil puts a hand on his hip and gestures.
"My, my, Jamil-san that's a very sassy reply." Jade smiles. He doesn't show his teeth and his eyebrows are still neutral instead of the absolutely gremlin expression he can manage. Somehow, Jade can make his face even more dangerous than Floyd's.
Jamil does not say it wasn't even that sassy even though he thinks it. "Hello, then." He follows up.
Jade's smile gets slightly larger.
Jamil waits for him to say something else.
Jade's expression does not change.
The air around them begins to feel more awkward. Jamil is used to the Leech brother antics but that doesn't mean he's become immune to Jade's ability to make people react. Every time he tries to resist for too long he ends up snapping in a way that's far too rewarding for Jade. He counts to five in his head — Kalim is a ten count, Jade is a five, Floyd unfortunately only gets a three and Jamil tries to do twenty with Azul but that is very trying on his patience.
"Well then. If you don't need anything then I'll excuse myself." Jamil smiles back at Jade, mirroring the pleasant nonchalance. As expected Jade steps to the side to more fully block Jamil's path.
"I didn't say that, did I?" And there it is. The way Jade's expression splits from agreeable to wicked; the slight tilt of his eyebrows and the way his mouth opens just enough to show his teeth.
"I have a very small request." Jade spreads his hands, his body language is submissive but his expression remains sharp as fangs. "If you don't mind listening to the appeal of the Octavinelle Vice-Housewarden. . . Vice-Housewarden of Scarabia, Jamil-san."
"Laying it on thick, aren't you?"
"Me? Perish the thought."
"And you're drawing this out."
"I'm merely unsure how to proceed, you're being so guarded but this is a sensitive matter."
"I thought you said 'a very small request'?"
"Something small can still be sensitive, for instance. . ." Jade trails off, giving Jamil time to interrupt him — something Jamil gladly takes.
"All right, all right! I'll consider your request, stop being so weird."
"My poor brother has been in a mood lately. It seems that Professor Crewel has been on his case for poor performance lately. Alas, if only everyone understood Floyd's genius, though even I can admit his methods can be. . . uncommon. I have a gift for him but I'm far too busy to deliver it myself, you see I have some pressing club matters to attend to."
Jade is the only member of the Mountain Lovers Club. The lie is so blatant Jamil knows it's because Jade wants Jamil to feel set up.
"And?" Jamil crosses his arms.
Jade leans in close without stepping closer. Much like Floyd, Jade also has quite amazing control over his body. Unlike Floyd who tended to end up contorted into odd postures and leans Jade typically kept himself ramrod straight and professional so any deviation from that is alarming.
"I'll pay you, of course."
Again they are both silent, measuring each other. There are times when Jamil thinks that Jade would have been better suited to Scarabia — the Sorcerer of the Sands was said to have had the best mind of strategy among all the Great Seven, a mage who thought ahead and outwitted his opponents — though it would be truly odd if the twins had been separated and Jamil does not think he would ever feel safe if Jade slept in the Scarabia dorms.
"Pay me what." Jamil does not put it beyond Jade to 'pay him' in some form of humiliation or blackmail that only benefits Jade.
Jade's grin widens. He looks fully like an underwater predator. "Oh, see, here's where you must find it truly a good deal. A blank cheque for this little favor."
Suspicious but even in the hundreds of scenarios Jamil's mind plays through he can't see the obvious trap. So he agrees.
It isn't hard to find Floyd. Jamil only has to ask the most harried student he sees who shakily points him towards the Ramshackle dorm. It's long been empty since the Prefect and Grim had. . . left. Jamil doesn't think about it often and tries not to since it's funny how only a year with the Prefect had impacted him so much. But he is also happy that the Prefect made it back home. Even if it had been like that. The dorm itself still stood, still in good condition and the (depending on if you asked Vil 'expanded VDC tribe' or Idia 'SSR Troublemakers' or Leona 'group of idiots') all took turns ensuring it's in good condition. Of course after they all graduate it will probably fall back into disrepair but on occasion they still find each other there, sometimes to game, sometimes for an unfortunate bout of karaoke, sometimes students simply use it for quiet time.
To find Floyd there isn't entirely unpredictable but it is rare. His mood must truly be foul.
Jamil doesn't knock on the door he lets himself in and starts to noisily walks up the stairs. It's a little out of character for him to have such heavy steps but he knows it will work better than calling out. Sure enough after only a few stairs Floyd comes sliding down the bannister.
"Sea Snake!" Floyd's grinning, but his tone lacks teasing. It's sharp. He rides the bannister to the bottom and then gets off, so he's behind Jamil. "What're you doing here? Hm?"
Jamil turns and holds out the gift from Jade. It's a box wrapped in white paper with a violet bow. Jade's crisp handwriting is on the top simply spelling out 'Floyd'.
"Jade wants you to have this."
"Aha? A gift from Jade?" Floyd asks but he's looking at Jamil, not the box. "I bet he wants something~ well, no reason to think about it." If only Jamil could be so carefree about Jade Leech's schemes. Then, without warning, Floyd takes the box and wraps an arm around Jamil's. He starts back up the stairs, taking them two at a time and making Jamil stumble-hop with him to compensate for his shorter stride. Floyd drags him to one of the bedrooms that the 'group of idiots' had commandeered to a game room earlier in the year. He tosses them both to the couch, bouncing on the cushions before standing right back up. At least he let go of Jamil's arm to not drag him up as well.
"Now that I've delivered it, I'm going to go." Jamil says.
"Aw, c'mon. . . stay a while." Floyd starts tearing into his gift. He tosses the bow, paper and box lid to the side and then makes a lilting laugh. "Sea Snake, what size shoe are you?"
"Huh? A size eight," Jamil finds himself responding and wonders why is it exactly Floyd is so good at disarming him.
Floyd drops the box with a flourish and in his hand are a pair of shoes definitely too small for Floyd. The shoes are a pair of black high heels, simply but certainly they cost more than all of Jamil's shoes put together. Possibly his wardrobe. With a matte finish and then gold snakes curling up the thin heel to coil around the back of the shoe they are elegant and lavish looking. The snakes have red eyes that are some kind of precious stone and the scales — even from the distance Jamil is at — look to be incredibly detailed.
"Perfect."
Jamil is not going to question how Jade knows his shoe size. It is far less weird than other things Jade knows. Still a touch creepy though.
"He said the gift was for you." Jamil is not protesting because he can see the pieces fitting together, now. The numerous scenarios that he thought of and tried to prepare for are entirely inadequate. Floyd's bad mood which often can't simply be solved seems to have gone from dull to gleeful as soon as Jamil stepped foot in the Ramshackle dorm.
"Oh, it is." Floyd trills and sits down in front of Jamil. Where Jade would probably have kneeled and extended a hand, Floud sits down cross legged and leans forward, hand going to Jamil's knee. "Gimme your foot~"
Jamil braces his foot on Floyd's shoulder and pushes instead. "You can't just ambush people with stuff like this!" Floyd laughs as he's rocked back but as he's pushed by Jamil's foot his fingers find shoelaces and with only a little tugging Jamil's sneaker comes off. Then his sock.
"Ink looks nice still." Floyd traces the arrow on the bottom of Jamil's foot. His fingertips on the sole of Jamil's foot are light even if the hold he has on Jamil's ankle is iron. Jamil's toes twitch, Floyd's touch tickles but more than that he feels his cheeks heating.
"Why is this Jade's gift to you." Jamil can hear his own voice grow a little more shrill, not helped by Floyd's easy laughter or the black heel being slipped on his foot. Again, it's the perfect size. Jamil suspects it may actually be a custom made shoe since he's pretty certain mass produced ones wouldn't fit his feet too wide for most shoes i this style.
"'Cuz you make such cute faces." Floyd hums. His grip on Jamil's ankle slides up to his knee.
"I do not." Jamil protests. But his hands are braced on the couch so he doesn't fall off and also so he can dig the heel of the shoe into Floyd's shoulder so he can't pull his hoodie up over his face. So instead Jamil turns his face to the side, letting his long bang cover part of his expression.
"You're gonna leave a bruise, Sea Snake~" Floyd doesn't seem to mind though as he stays leaning forward for a moment longer. "Unless you wanna go around with one shoe one sneaker. . ."
"You can just give me my shoe back." Jamil says.
Floyd rolls his eyes and moves his hand to under Jamil's knee, his other hand goes to Jamil's thigh and he just lifts. Jamil squawks, the heel of the shoe catches on Floyd's jacket but the eel gets the desired result of Jamil's leg going straight up in the air. Then he lets go and Jamil's ankle crashes down on Floyd's shoulder.
"No can do! You already agreed to deliver my present." And Jamil's other shoe is eased off. His shoes and socks are thrown to the corner of the room as if to make a point and Floyd slides the other high heel onto his foot. Then Floyd leans back and sets Jamil's raised leg back on the floor. His grin, for once, doesn't show his teeth but has a kind of hazy pleased bend to it. "Aha~ Jade really knows his stuff. . . they look good on you."
Jamil settles his feet on the floor, it feels odd to have his knees raised slightly by the high heel but when he looks down at his feet he has to admit Floyd is right. The shoes do look good on him.
"C'mon!" Floyd suddenly stands up. It's amazing how fast the eel can go from sitting to standing, his entire body just straightening. Jamil has wondered before if that's because Floyd is an eel merman or if simply like so many other Floyd things he's just trained his body to do what he wants. Jade is right, of course, Floyd's an eccentric genius and Jamil admits he's seen the other go from barely able to catch a basketball to cleaning up on the court. He kind of wishes Floyd was a bit less athletic though since it would be far less embarrassing when Jamil stands up on the heels if Floyd wasn't so fluid in his movement. "Let's dance!"
"Now? With these!?" Jamil splutters but finds himself holding his hands out, both of them. Floyd's eyes light up and he grasps Jamil's hands, pulling him up off the couch and swinging him into a fast dance. They spin around the room and all of Jamil's dance lessons, as well as having worn heels before (though not as tall or as thin as these) pay off as he stumbles but never falls. He is also never going to admit that Floyd is a good dance partner and instead give all of the credit for staying upright to himself.
The real problem with Floyd is that his happiness is infectious. Just like how Floyd's bad moods bring everyone around him down his good moods are a buoy. Jamil finds himself getting into the dance, he stops watching his feet and meets Floyd's grin with a challenging one of his own. With the heels he's a lot taller than normal and it brings their faces far closer together. Even then Floyd makes sure to end the dance in a dramatic dip, one arm behind Jamil's back and a kiss on his lips.