Chapter Text
“Are you sick?” Haurchefant’s perceptiveness is a grace most of the time, and yet his au ra lover curses it sometimes. The man is attentive to absolutely no fault at all. (Though, it’s hard to find many faults with the knight. Men like Haurchefant tend not to have many.) Gakuya shakes his head at the other as he suppresses another cough and blinks at the sliver of harsh daylight that streams in through the curtains. The cold has yet to nip at his skin past the lingering warmth of sleeping under a multitude of blankets and his head is just fuzzy enough that he does not mind the distant noisiness yet.
“Dry.” he says simply, earning a soft laugh from the elezen who had gotten up to get dressed.
“That’s good.” the other says simply as he steps away towards the table past the divider; “It is oh so easy to forget that such a hero would have such simple needs.” He’s teasing, Gakuya knows; “And that your needs sometimes are much different than mine own.” It’s quieter outside than usual , Gakuya notes compared to the muffled sound of Haurchefant’s footsteps. (It’s still too noisy for his liking.) Strange. Are they awake early, or are his senses betraying him again? Gakuya takes a mug the other offers and holds it in his hands to keep the chill away a little longer. The elezen’s fingers are surprisingly warm when they brush against the bed-warmed scales on the au ra’s cheek. “At least you’re warm, just what I promised you~”
Those same fingers trace up the scales along his cheek to his cheekbone as he finally takes a sip of the offered drink, then along the inner edge of his horn, down along the inner side to run across the bottom, soft as a rivulet of water. That doesn’t stop the sharp sensation that runs up Gakuya’s horn and sends a shudder down his spine as he pulls away. A soft startled noise escapes the elezen, though his hand lingers between them in the air. Confusion flits across the other’s face before it shifts to open concern.
“Dry.” Gakuya repeats before the other can say anything.
“Hm. I suppose that makes sense.” Haurchefant muses; “Is there anything I can do?” Of course he asks that. Of course Haurchefant tries to take the onus onto himself. Well, it doesn’t hurt to let him help, since the knight takes so much joy in alleviating even the smallest discomforts. Gakuya will allow him this much, as he always does.
“Red jar, my bag.” there’s no need to waste extra words, especially not with the knight. Haurchefant more than happily busies himself with finding said bag on the floor and fetching the red glass jar inside. Once found, he lifts the lid and takes a soft sniff of the balm inside.
“Oh, this smells lovely. Is it honey?” a nod; “It suits you. Is this.. For your horns then?” Haurchefant is a kind man, a perceptive man, a handsome man, a brave man, but there is nothing to be said for his split-second thoughts. He nods again, just to humor the man. “May I?” Haurchefant asks as if they hadn’t laid together last night, or like they didn’t wake tangled together, like Uya himself didn’t wake to the other’s fingers tracing the scale patterns on the bridge of his nose so delicately.
“Yeah.” Most would find the au ra's answer gruff, but Haurchefant's smile lights up like the sun and he dips his fingers gently into the balm. He swipes too little at first, clearly underestimating how quickly the surface of Uya's horns would absorb the balm. It's dry here. The au ra leans into Haurchefant's touch regardless. Haurchefant is gentle with him, downright reverent as he does something so simple as apply balm. He touches the warrior of light as though he hasn't seen the man bring down all manner of dragon and beast. Though, knowing Haurchefant, that could very well be the reason he does it. Being so gentle, the sword callouses on the other's palms don't catch on the underside of his horns.
"Oh my, do you have to restock on this often?" A nod. "Perhaps I can find a way to procure this…"
"I make it." That doesn't seem to surprise the other at all.
"Of course you do, sweetling, you're everso industrious. I truly envy your numerous talents." The elezen says with not an ounce of envy. His voice is warm, instead, with affection and pride. For all that Uya dislikes prolonged conversation, he is thankful for this much, that Haurchefant can take his curt, broken sentences and carry the entire conversation from them. The man has a pleasant voice, one that registers well with Gakuya's strangely impaired yet sensitive hearing, a voice that doesn't rumble unpleasantly when they sit too close to one another. "Is there anything you can't do? If it were in fashion, I'd ask you to teach me how to knit, or something similar. Anything must be more fun than paperwork…"
"Mn."
"I hear the others still have the scarves you gave them. A shame they cannot wear them more often." It's easy enough to let the other carry on chattering in some random direction as Uya's eyes fall closed and his attention slips away enough that Haurchefant's voice is a pleasantly rhythmed droning and his gentle hands only pull the barest sensations from his horns. The chill is starting to seep into his bones and his drink has long gone cold, Haurchefant will be needed at his post by the next bell, but this is nice enough for now. They only have so much time to relax before the world comes knocking, after all.