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“Rook…”
With care as if he were holding something made of glass, Vil gently combed his fingers through the ends of Rook’s hair, frowning ever so slightly at the texture of it. The hunter, on the other hand, had remained perfectly still, allowing the other blonde to inspect his hair. Whilst of course, he would follow every thing Vil said to the absolute line, it was only human of him to sometimes let it slip when caught up with other things (in this case, a 3 day camping-hunting trip in the forest).
“The ends are dry, and threatening to split.”
“ Ah , my wonderful Roi du Poison managed to figure it out with the most quick of inspections!” He grinned, a small sparkle in his eye as he glanced up at Vil, silently begging for him to offer a solution for what really was just a minor beauty problem.
Perhaps it was because they hadn’t been by one another’s side for so long, or well, a few days, or perhaps it was simply because sometimes he did have a moment of weakness looking at Rook’s puppy dog expression, the dorm head couldn’t help the next few words from escaping past his lips. “Well, seeing as I’ve personally figured out this problem, I’ll help you resolve it for once. But; don’t allow it to happen again, hm?”
What was only a small amount of anticipation quickly burst into a great feeling of excitement for Rook, the blonde quickly standing up off the chair he’d been sitting on and doing a small half-bow towards Vil in thanks, then wrapping an arm around his partner’s waist as he tugged him closer. Well - he missed him too! And it was unfair that this was the first private time in which the two of them shared since he had stepped foot back into the dorm.
“Thank you, from the bottom of my heart! Such an act of kindness will not go forgotten! As always, I will listen to your careful instruction, and will do my best to avoid such small hair failures in the future!” He spoke grandly, chuckling towards the end as he watched a smile grow on Vil’s painted lips, the other unable to stop himself from getting caught up in the moment, fondly then looping his arms around Rook’s shoulders.
“Really now… whatever shall I do with you, my dear hunter?” The queen smiled fondly towards Rook, leaning forward and pressing a soft kiss against his cheek, enjoying an expression that only he was then privy too.
---
Although such moments would always come to an end, as Vil pulled away from Rook and began ushering him into his bathroom. The faint scent of something fruity lingered in the air, the aftermath of inspecting new hair products the night before (none of which he liked personally, all passed off to members in Pomefiore he knew would use them; it would be a waste to toss).
“You at least know how to prepare for a bath, hm?” Vil spoke after he began to twist the taps on said bath, glancing over to Rook who looked incredibly calm on the outside despite how excited he definitely was inside.
“Ah, of course! Whilst it breaks my heart ever so slightly that the wonderful Roi du Poison won’t instruct me on all the steps to repair such damage to my locks; oui , I can undress myself.” The blonde spoke, his true mood ever so clear in the way he spoke, arms moving to add flair to his whole comment. Pardoning himself to go back into Vil’s bedroom, he carefully undressed, folding his clothing into a neat pile, then adding his hat on top of the pile afterwards. Laundry magic was usually easier if everything were together, after all.
In the meanwhile; Vil had remained in the bathroom, kneeling beside the ornate tub as he rummaged through a small basket of salts. Yes; he had only mentioned fixing the minor damage to Rook’s hair, but since it had been quite a while since he allowed Rook to be indulged, he figured it’d be best to make his bath enjoyable. Humming almost silently, he tried to recall the last time he properly instructed Rook, the only recent memory from back in the middle of their second year. He’d figured his partner had by then learned all there was to know about beauty; but hadn’t quite caught on that he was trying to simply trying to spend more time with the newly appointed dorm head until the latter half of that year.
Looking back, he’s always been by my side whether I desired him too or not.
Smiling to himself at the fond memory, Vil finally picked out a scent he liked, something that reminded him of Rook, tipping the almost-empty jar of salts into the water and carefully stirring it with his hand. The salts had a slight green tinge to them, and smelt like the woods. It was one of the few that didn’t smell like a certain species of flower. The water temperature was good too, thankfully, he discovered as he was mixing the salts and water; and then as if Rook had read his mind, the man had re-entered the room ( silently, he didn’t even hear his feet hit the tiles below), chuckling as he turned off the taps before Vil could reach over.
“Allow me.”
“And how long have you been standing there?”
“Just long enough to wonder what thoughts cross your mind; seeing such a beautiful smile, I know it to be something close to your heart. Considérez-moi curieux .”
“Mmm… perhaps I’ll let you in on those thoughts another day. Now, get in before the water runs cold.”
Vil lightly tapped Rook’s shoulder as if giving him some silent permission, allowing Rook to slide into the bath whilst he went and found the specific hair treatments his partner would need. Everything in this bathroom was properly stored; so there was no time for him to waste. Rook also knew the specifics behind such an organisation system, and admittedly he did have a hand in helping Vil move all of it into the bathroom once the other had upgraded to his current residence.
“ Ah , whilst there is something exciting about bathing in the water given to us in nature’s paradise; there truly is nothing in comparison to winding down in such a lovingly drawn bath, especially in the company of someone as pleasant and beautiful as yourself! ” Rook spoke as he sat in the tub, doing his best to refrain from his usual flourishing hand gestures as to not allow water to splash everywhere.
“I hope I will be pleasant enough for you this afternoon so that you do refrain from the same mistakes.” Vil quickly replied in a teasing tone of voice, dropping the strictness for now. He had found what he was looking for and made a gesture for Rook to sit up more straight as he stood beside the tub, fingers combing through the short blonde locks of the hunter’s hair before he then began to wash it. Rook only grinned in response, allowing for Vil to concentrate on the activity, aware of the fact the dorm head was absolutely counting each moment, each second product was in his hair before then rinsing it. It was imperative that certain hair conditioners only remained in the hair for a set period of time, too long or too little would ruin it’s effect, and well, the standard for beauty was pretty strict, at the end of the day.
Closing his eyes, Rook allowed himself a moment to relax, enjoying the feeling of Vil’s delicate fingers massaging his scalp and combing through his hair, even if the two of them knew most of it would be covered by a hat once this was over. But; he was in no hurry to put it back on again, at least - he would enjoy how his hair would shine, done by Vil’s perfectionist hands.
“Mm, Vil.”
“Yes, Rook?”
“Do you think this would ever happen again? Peut-être , not in the distant future, but when we are older?”
A pause hung in the air, Vil washing out the last of the product before he spoke up.
“When we’re older... I do hope by then you wouldn’t need my assistance in taking care of your hair. But… I do enjoy the thought of still having you by my side then.”
There was a small stumble in his voice, noticeable enough for Rook to quickly turn around to face Vil, eyes wide as he caught a faint blush on the other’s cheeks. Although, seeing Rook suddenly turn around quickly made that expression fade away, his trademark frown opting to form instead.
“Rook- we are not done here!”
“How can one not react when hearing of such a hopeful and potential promise!” Rook laughed, taking Vil’s hands in his own as he gestured him to lean forward, his partner complying and allowing the hunter to steal a kiss from his lips.
“Mhm, and we will discuss this later, after I am done with your hair.”
“
Oui
, I look forward to it.”