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Pete and Lucius got one another almost instantly.
They understood how to make the other person feel valued.
Long words of care and adoration.
Spilling over how handsome the other one was.
Quite foolishly, they had never stopped for a moment to wonder if Izzy felt the same about that.
It was only after whatever the hell that happened in the stoor rooms that they stopped and actually considered it.
Once they asked the question, they both felt more than a little guilty at not seeing it before.
Any time they complimented him, he never… reacted… at all.
He would brush them off and walk away.
Both had written it aside as part of their usual banter, but… looking at it now, they could see that he was uncomfortable with it.
He could see that he wasn't the sort to enjoy that spotlight shining in his direction.
Even more so, neither of them felt that a conversation would fix anything here and may, in fact, make it worse.
So, the two of them asked what they did know about Izzy.
How had he shown them that he could possibly be more than the grumpy mess he always was.
"He did my tattoo for me." Lucius pointed out, gesturing to the fully healed little heart.
"Looked after you when you were sick," Lucius added, gesturing to Pete.
"Medical help when we got banged up." Pete offered as Lucius nodded.
"Listened to me bitching about Captain." Lucius nodded.
"I guess… he likes to see it rather than hear it." Pete shrugged.
Lucius nodded, as it did make sense from everything they had gathered from Izzy; he never says that he can care for people; he leaves them to figure it out.
Those fleeting moments of kindness and gestures of care, mixed with harsh words that buried deep down, were a compliment.
Izzy wasn't, so keep on being told that they cared for him and could work with that.
No one brought up the talk in the storeroom, Izzy acted as if nothing changed, and Lucius and Pete eased up on the compliments.
Instead, grabbing an orange or two for Izzy when they went below deck.
Or Lucius leaving a book on his bed cause he thought Izzy would like it.
Little things that didn't have to be so loud to be noticed.
Remarkably, Izzy was trying something similar.
Emphasis on trying.
Pete was alone with Izzy, as alone as you could get on a ship, that is.
When Izzy had spoken.
"I… quite enjoy your stories," he said, shifting uncomfortably at the openness.
It didn't stop Pete from perking up.
"Really?" he grinned.
Izzy nodded, not looking in his direction.
"Even if they are entirely made up." he shrugged, finally looking over to him as Pete just grinned.
"All the best ones are."
Again when Lucius was alone with him in Izzy's cabin, one of the few places he could revise his notes in peace, scribbling something or another down in the big book he always carried when Izzy walked past.
"Your handwriting is quite nice." he complimented, making Lucius blush.
"You think so?" he grinned.
Izzy nodded.
"Exactly that of a posh Lil schoolboy." he grinned in Lucius's direction.
Lucius saw it for what it was and didn't miss how after that, Izzy's door remained ajar for him to come in and sit down to do whatever he needed while Izzy did his own activities, reading, caring for his sword, mending his clothes.
Izzy also threatened them in a myriad of colorful ways that if the crew started asking him to mend their garments, their heads would be going through the needle.
That didn't stop him from grumbling and picking up one of Petes' discarded shirts and stitching up the myriad of holes in it along with Izzy's, chiding them on it then entier time.