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The Captain approached Pat, who was sitting on a rock outside. He decided to sit with him and followed the man's gaze.
He found he was looking in a tree. Captain squinted his eyes and craned his neck, trying to see what Pat was fixated on. "Is there a sniper up there?" He asked.
Pat turned to him with a laugh and rubbed his back. "No. No! Certainly not. It's 2021, not 1943. The war ended ages ago! It'd be quite preposterous if we found a German man sitting on that tree."
"Ah, but he could be a ghost." Captain murmured, looking the tree over again.
Pat shook his head and took the man's swagger stick. He pointed up with it, directing the Captain's eyes to a particular branch.
"What do you see?"
"An average tree."
"Look closer, mate. Mummy falcon is preening."
Captain rose a brow. "That's not code, is it?"
Pat turned around, now facing the house. The Captain turned with him, and then Pat pointed at a ledge. "That nest, do you see it?"
"Oh, yes. Certainly."
"A family of peregrine falcons have taken up residence on the Button property. The babies just hatched, last week."
"And their mum is in that tree?"
They turned back to the forest.
Pat pointed with the stick again. Finally, the Captain could make out the bird.
"She blends in a bit there."
"Oh, yes. She'll probably look for food soon." Pat seemed very pleased.
The older man set his hand over Pat's. "Let's go see those babies. Do they look like her?"
"Not quite." Pat curled his fingers around Captain's and they got off of the rock, walking toward the house. "They look like little cotton balls."
The two of them made their way to the second floor, then exited a window and stood on the ledges. Captain stood behind Pat, his hands on the man's love handles, leant over him and taking in the sight of the birds.
"They're adorable."
With the purest and happiest smile Captain had ever seen, Pat nodded and smiled at him.
The mother saw them from the tree and came barreling toward them, screeching, so the two hustled back inside.
"Have the wildlife been having their babies, now, then?" Captain asked.
"Yes, yes, oh! Let me show you something."
So, with that, Pat had Captain's hand in his, and began leading him outside. The Captain wore a content smile, loving the man's affection for wildlife. He must've truly been an excellent scout's leader.
Pat led the man into the trees and showed him where some deer had been staying.
"Mum's given birth a week or two ago. See the baby? A little girl."
Captain nodded. "Yes, yes. Quite."
"I've actually sorta been… befriending them, kinda. When I was alive, I'd been a bit cautious to approach wildlife so haphazardly-- but what do I have to lose now? They're getting used to me, see," Pat walked out from the tree they were hidden behind and presented himself to the deer. She noticed him, looked at him, then went back to caring for her baby.
"Well, she does look calm, with you being about her child." Captain noted. He stepped out to join Pat, but the deer got spooked and quickly went off to find a less crowded spot to lay.
"Well, that's alright, anyway. I want to show you more birds. There's a chiffchaff nest right over here. Their babies hatched just yesterday morning, can you believe that? So young. They've got a long life ahead of 'em."
The nest of chiffchaff's lead to another bird, then another mammal-- Pat even delighted in the bugs he spotted; butterflies, bees, even the spiders. He dragged his lovestruck partner around, giving him a tour of more animals than he'd ever thought about.
Their tour was cut short when the sun began setting. "I'd love to show you our nocturnal neighbors, but I believe we should get some sleep," Pat said, looking up at Captain.
"Oh, yes." Now Captain took the lead, bringing Pat inside-- but instead of stopping in their room, he kept leading him upstairs, and then out onto the roof. "A lovely view of the sunset, up here."
Pat melted a bit. He nodded. "Oh, we used to watch the sunsets, the troop and I. We hiked all day, and then set up camp, and had s'mores by a fire while the sun set."
"That sounds nice. I used to do the same."
"With who?" Pat smiled at him.
The Captain faultered a bit, gave Pat a tight lipped smile, and squeezed his shoulder. "My friend. It doesn't matter. That was a long time ago."
They walked to the top of the roof and promptly sat down. Pat sqished his hands between his thighs and stretched out his legs. Captain sat with a straight posture, one hand on Pat's back.
The pair said nothing as the sun set, but once it was over, they turned to each other with tender smiles.
Captain cupped Pat's cheek and leant in to meet him for a kiss. "Thank you for showing me all of those animals. I haven't ever taken the time to appreciate the life around us."
Pat nodded. "Yeah, makes me feel better, for sure. I know they'll live on at this old house." He looked at the dark sky, then back toward Captain, who had moved a bit closer.
"Perhaps we should go inside, it's a bit chilly out here." He slung his arm around Pat's waist, and while Pat was preoccupied leaning up for a kiss, Captain slipped a very cold hand into his shirt.
Pat jumped and chuckled. He pushed Captain away jokingly. "Oh, you feel like a ghost!"
With the both of them laughing, they got up and descended the roof, walking through the closed hatch and down to their shared room.
They got into bed together. Sure, they couldn't get under the covers, cuddle up, and truly get warm, but as of every night since their relationship, they got very close together. Pat was a round little ball of complete warmth. It was the most refreshing thing for a ghost to lay down to each night.