Chapter Text
He was no stranger to reaching for things, with his hands that is.
Usually, it was for things that were being held over his head by the older guards that were teasing him before he had established his authority as the Golden Guard. Other times, it was for things that were out of his reach, left on just a too high shelf by someone who would be punished for embarrassing him in such a manner, accidental or not. Now is one of the latter times and, unfortunately, he can’t exactly bring down the hammer on the person who has him in this situation.
Hunter strains as he raises up on his toes and leans on the shelf that’s actually in his reach, the tip of his tongue poking out as he tries and tries and tries to at least graze the corner of the bag of chips he’s trying to reach. He knows that that damn bird worm had to have stocked the shelves after the owl lady had come back from the weekly shopping trip, that’s the only reason half the edible items would be on the shelves nobody can reach. Titan, he feels ridiculous and he’s certain he has to look it at this point as he makes half an attempt to push himself up higher with the shelf underneath him, growling under his breath when he yet again just barely touches the foil of the bag. Nobody’s around, maybe he could sacrifice some dignity and jump for i--
“And what are you up to, blondie?”
“AH!”
The food rattles as he whips around, but his prize remains lodged between a bucket of cheese balls and a box of those cookies he sees Luz eating. Eda snorts when he grumbles up at them and he can feel his ears grow warm at her laughter, an embarrassed pout settling onto his features. She’s making fun of him…
“I was just getting a snack, I didn’t mean to cause a disturbance.”
“Eh, I wouldn’t call it a disturbance so much as I came into the kitchen to get myself a snack and got the pleasure of seeing the almighty Golden Guard up on his tippy-toes.”
His pout only deepens at her snickering and he crosses his arms as he turns his gaze to the floor, ears lowering as the tips flush from pink to red. To some level, he recognizes her tone to be light and some part of him knows that she’s just playing around, but a louder, more prideful part of him is what has him closing the pantry with a huff. He has every intention of stomping off with his nose turned up and his shoulders hunched to give at the very least the illusion of having his dignity intact, but when a hand comes down on his shoulder, he freezes. The hand moves after a moment, seemingly realizing how taut his back had gone, and he looks over his shoulder, calming when he remembers where he is and who he’s with.
“Listen, kid,” Eda starts, her smile smarmy, but still somehow soft and caring. He’s starting to wonder if sarcastic (maybe sassy is the better word?) is just her default expression. “If you’re hungry, I can make you something to eat, it’s no trouble.”
“It’s not a big -”
“Don’t say it’s not a big deal. If it wasn’t a big deal, do you think I would be offering? Lunch isn't for an hour, but I don’t mind moving it up if those black bean burgers you like sound good.”
“I’m not hun-”
A loud gurgling growl interrupts the conversation and just as Hunters ears had finally cooled off, they’re right back up to scorching red. What a fucking traitor! G-Granted, those veggie burgers are his favorite food and he had neglected to eat anything being so caught up in his studies, but that’s no reason to out him like this! He wraps his arms around his stomach and turns away to cough into his fist, but the huff of a laugh Eda lets out behind him is telling enough of his fate.
“I’ll think I’ll be taking that as a yes.”
He wants to argue, he wants to insist that it isn't an issue, but his mind goes blank when she reaches up to ruffle his hair before she steps away to start getting ingredients ready. Damn it. Stupid physical affection, his only weakness. He just can’t win today, huh? His stomach growls again, louder and more insistent with a pang of pain to really drive the point home, and it’s with a sigh that he finally relents and plops down in a chair at the table. He watches her move about the kitchen, focusing her attention and beaming when she manages to levitate the vegetables she needs from the fridge to the counter.
“What’s that again?” He asks after a few minutes, watching every move she does curiously.
“Cured poison dragon scale seasoning,” Eda answers easily as she sprinkles it over the patty, setting it down to pick up another little canister. “And yes, it’s the spicy kind that you like.”
“And that?”
“This is tangy lemon fairy dust stuff that nobody but you and King can stand.”
“Mm. ...What’s-”
“Hunter. Kid.” She turns to him with a gentle smile that’s delightfully exasperated. “If I let you help , will you stop asking so many questions?”
Hunter startles like he’s just realized that he’s been talking at all, face turning pink for the third time in the last thirty minutes. He searches her face for a moment, as if she could somehow once again be teasing him, but when his scouring only finds the kind eyes of a nice lady who is very tired of his prattling, he scoffs.
“I’m only doing this to make sure you aren’t going to try to poison me behind my back,” he mumbles as he stands, stepping over to the sink to wash his hands.
“Oh, please, blondie. If I wanted to poison you, I wouldn't be so cliche as to put it in your food.” She bumps her with her hip as he comes over. “Gimme a little more panache than that, kid, come on.”
Hunter can’t help but chuckle a little bit, though he turns his head to hide his smile from her. He works diligently at her side and he can’t help but notice how she asks for him to hand things to him, not demanding and always waiting for him to read the labels and pick what she’s called out from the cabinet. There isn't an insult waiting on her to sling at him when he pulls down the wrong thing and she pays no attention to Li’l Rascal when it comes fluttering in looking for him, nesting in his hair with a little peep. Some part of him grows playfully jealous when Eda reaches up and her nails scratch at the palismans feathers rather than his hair and the bird is lucky his attention is focused on making sure the patty doesn’t burn. Another little traitor to add to the mix, he supposes.
“Nice job, kid, you didn’t burn it. Think you can grab the buns from the pantry or do I have to pick you up to help you grab them?”
Now, he should huff about the remark and his ear does flick in mild annoyance, but the little tidbit of praise has him preening as he pulls the pantry open. The bread is thankfully right in front of him on a shelf he can reach, saving him the embarrassment of having to actually ask her for help as he skips back over and holds them out to her.
“Thanks, blondie.”
“No problem, grey-ie.”
Eda’s eyes widen and she hisses with a smile as Hunter once again turns away to hide his laughter, yelping with a giggle when she tugs his ear gently and tells him to watch it, lest she actually make those poison speculations a reality.
“Alright, here you go, kid.” Hunter can’t deny the way his mouth waters a little when she passes the plate to him. “One black bean burger and…”
Eda elbows the wall and the house shakes, smoothly holding out her hand as his chips finally fall neatly right into her palm.
“A bag of salt and vinegar chips.”
You would have to kill him to get him to admit it and even then he’d take it to his grave, but his eyes are sparkling as he clumsily takes the bag from Eda. She pats his head as much as she can with the bird still up there and tells him to enjoy and that there are drinks in the fridge as she walks off, leaving Hunter to scramble to keep his lunch from slipping off his plate when Li’l Rascal squawks at him about it.
“Can you get me a drink from the fridge, buddy?”
The bird peeps and flies over to fulfill the request as Hunter settles in his chair. He takes a moment to stare down at the burger, gaze eventually turning to the hallway. She made this for him, she had offered firsthand to. She let him help and didn’t berate him for a moment for his mistakes. She didn’t even want something in return, she didn’t even expect it, she just...made it because he was hungry. ...Still, he can’t let himself relax. You can never trust anyone that mu--
The sound of a bottle being set on the table snaps him out of his thoughts and he turns to see both a water bottle and Li’l Rascal pecking at his food, working to break off a piece for itself while his back is turned.
“Heheh-hey!” He pushes it back gently, chuckling when it hops up on his hand to continue its thievery. “By the Titan, I will cut you a piece, just stop trying to take my lunch.”
The bird seems pleased with this compromise, peeping up at him like it wasn’t just trying to commit robbery right in front of him. He rips off a chunk small enough for it to pull apart without trouble, but still sizable enough that it won’t be trying to swipe his lunch from him again. He takes a moment to fill the cap of the water bottle for it and to open up his bag of chips, casting one more glance down the hallway, like he wants to say something that’s just on the tip of his tongue, before he gathers his burger up in his hands and takes a bite.
Well, he knows one thing for certain. If this is poisoned, he wouldn’t mind eating another if it’s going to taste this good.