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Jimmy was acting off.
Grian hadn't noticed at first, but the other avian had started to act weird and Grian couldn't for the life of him figure out why. For starters, Jimmy seemed almost a little shy nowadays, which was incredibly odd. In all the years that Grian had known Jimmy, the man had been many things- but shy? Jimmy may be easily flustered, but he's never been shy, especially not around Grian.
Then there were the... things. Jimmy had started gifting Grian things. At first they seemed a little random, some trinkets here and there, mostly small, shiny objects. Jimmy had done that before, occasionally, but only when they were sharing a nest, which they hadn't done in years. The things he'd give Grian changed tho- every time they met now, Jimmy would have something to give him. He'd gotten charms, bracelets, flowers (a lot of flowers, actually, so many in fact that Grian had started a little garden with them), candy and then, the last gift he'd gotten had been cookies.
But they weren't store-bought, no, they were home-made by Jimmy himself. And something about that made Grians heart flutter, made him puff his dark brown wings and stride with much more pride than usual.
Grian didn't mind the gifts, he liked them a lot, actually. If it had been just that, he'd just assume that Jimmy was simply wanting to show his appreciation for his friend.
But his odd behaviour didn't stop there.
Every time Grian tried to bring up the gifts in conversation, Jimmy blushed a dark red and dodged the topic or, much more often, he literally dodged Grian, running off with his head hung low, almost like he was scared or ashamed.
Once, Grian tried to give him something back, he had found a necklace at a shop that had a feather-shaped pendant. The feather was made out of some sort of gem that was stunningly close in color to Grians blackish-brown wings. He'd given it to Jimmy when they next met and Jimmy had almost denied the gift, but Grian was insistent, so he had carefully slipped the necklace around his neck. The entire day after that, Jimmy had been spacing out a lot and whenever someone commented on the necklace, he'd blushed furiously and stammered around.
Grian had thought it was adorable back then. But now he wasn't so sure- now he was just mostly concerned. Because for whatever reason, Jimmy absolutely refused to talk about the entire situation and it drove Grian absolutely insane.
To top off all of this... weird behaviour, Jimmy and spoken with Xisuma recently and after a hushed conversation, Xisuma had granted Jimmy access to the hermitcraft server.
Jimmy wasn't a hermit, mind you. But X had still given him full, permanent access and the only people that weren't hermits that were allowed such a request were family members and long established lovers.
And Jimmy, to Grians knowledge, was neither to any hermit.
Not that he minded this new development. Jimmy came to visit Grian on most days now, still shy and blushing an awful lot, playing nervously with the hem of his blue shirt whenever they talked, but he seemed to get more comfortable each day. Which was good, Grian was glad about that.
Another thing started happening after Jimmy started coming by frequently: feathers. Grian found bright yellow feathers just about everywhere in his base, which honestly shouldn't surprise him all that much. With how often Jimmy came to visit, it really was no wonder, but something about it still felt... Grian couldn't even describe how he felt about it.
Seeing the feathers in random places made Grian feel warm, made him unreasonably happy. Once, he found one of Jimmy's feathers in his bed after he'd slept over and Grians heart had beaten like crazy for hours. It felt... Domestic. And while Grian didn't mind it, he was terribly confused.
Because Grian and Jimmy had known each other for many years, they were best friends and they'd never been much more than that. So why....? Why was Grians heart stuttering when he saw Jimmy now? Why was Grian giddy and excited when he thought about what present he might receive next? Why did he feel sudden urges to kiss Jimmy? When had he started thinking of his best friend as cute?
None of it made sense to Grian.
Grian sighed as he got up for another long day of building and maybe, hopefully, seeing Jimmy again. He was halfway through his breakfast when he heard a knock on his front door. Excitedly, Grian ran to open it. But it wasn't Jimmy standing there, it was Xisuma.
Grian could make out a soft smile underneath the visor. "Good morning Grian, I hope I didn't wake you up?" Grian shook his head. "You're all good, I was just eating breakfast. Why don't you come in?" He said, stepping to the side to let the admin in. When they were both sitting at Grians table, Grian smiled at X. "So, what brings you to me so early?" Xisuma chuckled and carefully removed his helmet, setting it down gently.
He didn't do that often, Grian had only seen him do it twice. One time when It had been exceptionally hot and sweltering and another time, which had been just before they had a very serious talk about something Grian wished to forget entirely. Considering that his base wasn't in a very hot biome, Grian was not excited for this coming conversation.
"I've been meaning to talk with you about Jimmy."
Out of all the things Xisuma could've said, this might have been the worst. Grian immediately tensed up, looking at Xisuma with barely concealed panic. "Is he okay? Nothing happened to him, right?!" The words left Grians mouth before he could think about them. A deep sting settled in his chest. Xisuma sighed. "No, nothing's wrong. He's perfectly healthy. I've just been thinking recently... His behaviour is very different from yours, which I found odd since you're both avians. So I looked into it, I asked Doc if I could borrow some books from the Hivemind Archives and well..." He suddenly looked a little nervous. Grian decidedly didn't like it when X got nervous. "Grian, has Jimmy told you... why he wanted access to hermitcraft?"
That question was weird. Grian shook his head. "I haven't asked... I thought it's probably something personal, especially because you agreed so quickly and I didn't want to pry." Xisuma sighed heavily and slumped back into his chair. He leveled Grian with an almost stern gaze that made Grian just a little uncomfortable. "Have you ever... Have you ever courted someone, Grian?" Grians eyes shot wide open and he blushed immediately. "That's... That's a rather personal question, X. I don't know why you ask, but... No, I haven't. Why is this relevant to Jimmy?" Xisuma seemed almost exasperated at his answer. "How much do you know about avian courting instincts?" He asked carefully.
Grian shrugged. "Not much? It's never been something I wanted to look into... I've heard that us avians like to bring gifts to their partners, but I think that's common knowledge. I also heard that we unconsciously leave feathers when we're with someone we love, and I think my parents told me once that food is also important? Something along the lines of wanting to make sure your partner is fed enough, so you bring food to their nest." Xisuma nodded. "Yeah, that's about what I got out of my own research. That and that gifting another person one of your feathers is considered the same as asking them out." The admin straightened up again and leaned over the table to look at Grian. "Please think back to the way Jimmy's acted, Grian. He already told me why he's acting this way, that's why I allowed him server access in the first place. I thought you were aware of it, but seeing you interact with him... I started doubting that and apparently I was right."
Grian stared at Xisuma blankly, but tried to follow the request. Taking the courting rituals into account, looking back on the way Jimmy had been acting....
Oh-
Oh he was an idiot.
Grians eyes grew wide with realisation. "I'm- oh gods, I'm so stupid." Grian slumped back into his chair and closed his eyes, groaning in frustration. "X I'm such an idiot! How did I not- oh bright stars, he wants to- Jimmy's-" he opened his eyes and stared at his ceiling, eyes unfocused. "He wants to date me. He's been asking me out-" Xisuma chuckled and when Grian looked at him, he saw relief in his eyes. "Yeah Jimmy's completely and utterly in love." The admin nodded at his own words and continued. "It's quite adorable, really. I actually thought you two were dating already when he came to talk to me, but then I saw you and him, well... Not kissing and not doing romantic things and I got a little worried that maybe you had a falling out or something..." Grian groaned again and ran his hands through his hair. "You thought we were- oh. Oh that's why I've been feeling so warm and why my heart's been- oh I really am stupid!" Xisuma laughed quietly and reached a hand out to him. "Don't beat yourself up over it, Gri. You weren't aware of his feelings and that's okay. You uh... You should talk to Jimmy tho." Grian nodded frantically. "Yeah, I should- I've gotta find a gift for him! Thank you so much for coming to talk to me X, I would've been hopeless if you hadn't."
"Well-" Xisuma stood, taking his helmet and gently slipping it over his head again. "I suppose you've got important matters to attend to now, so I'll leave you to it. If you need me for anything, shoot me a text." Grian nodded, still looking somewhat defeated. "Yeah... Yeah I will. Thanks for telling me, again." Xisuma nodded and patted Grian on the shoulder on his way out. "Best of luck to you and Jimmy!" He called over his shoulder before he closed the door behind himself.
Grian sank in on himself a little more. He felt so stupid for not realising his own and Jimmy's feelings. He needed to let Jimmy know- he needed to talk to Jimmy, fast.
And he wanted to have the perfect present for when he'd have that conversation.
Grian was in the middle of planning a surprise date for Jimmy, papers and books on avian behaviours scattered around his living room, when he suddenly heard a familiar chuckle behind him. He immediately gathered as many of the papers as possible in his arms and turned around. "Jimmy! Hey... I didn't hear you come in! Please don't look at anything." Jimmy raised an eyebrow at Grian and bent down to pick up a crumpled up paper, unfolding it gently. His bright yellow wings shook out behind him as he studied the note carefully. His smirk changed into a soft smile as he read, a blush creeping on Jimmy's face.
"Is... Is this a list of date ideas? Ohhh stargazing? That's a cute one! And a pillow fort and movies, that's adorable." Grian blushed immediately and snatched the paper out of Jimmy's hands, causing him to drop the ones he had picked up. They fluttered to the ground in a dramatic effect.
Jimmy chuckled at Grians clumsiness. "Well, I- I'm glad you like the ideas." Grian said, pointedly looking away from Jimmy. "The uh... You liked the stargazing?" Jimmy nodded. "Yeah, I love the night sky. Are you okay Grian? You've never been this shy before." Jimmy sounded genuinely worried and it made Grians heart beat faster. "I- yeah! Yeah, I'm good..." He gulped and finally looked up to meet Jimmy's eyes.
Grians gaze fell on the necklace Jimmy was wearing and his breath stopped. It was the necklace Grian had gotten him all those years ago, the one that had a feather made of some gem- a feather that looked exactly like Grians own.
He gasped softly, reaching out and gently holding the pendant in his palm, a few centimetres away from Jimmy's chest. Jimmy blushed harder at the action, but he was still very confused by Grians admittedly odd shyness. "I never realised- the feather looks so real, it actually looks like it would be real." Grian said softly.
Something about seeing what looked like one of his feathers on Jimmy's chest made Grians heart warm, made his chest swell with pride and love.
Jimmy went completely still for a second. "Is it... not one of yours?" Grian shook his head. "No, I- you were giving me gifts and I wanted to give you something back. I saw this in a shop and it looked so good, I just... Really wanted you to have it for some reason, I don't even know why-"
Grian suddenly remembered what Xisuma had said earlier.
"Oh. Oh that's why, I-" Grians eyes were wide open when he looked at Jimmy again. Jimmy's eyes were wide too, in fear, Grian realised. "You... You didn't-" Jimmy looked like he was about to cry. "Oh gods, you probably hadn't meant it in the way I thought- and all this time I've been thinking..." He broke off, suddenly pushing Grian away gently. "I'm so sorry Grian! I should've asked about the feather and what your intentions were when you gave it to me! And I've been around for months, years, giving you gifts when you didn't even- I'm so so sorry Grian."
Grian sighed and stepped closer to Jimmy again. Jimmy looked a bit uneasy at the closeness. "Do you... Do you love me, Jimmy?" His eyes widened impossibly more. "I- uh... I- Grian I- I never meant to make you uncomfortable, I really didn't-" Grian cut him off. "It's true I didn't know what the significance of feathers was before to us avians, but I know now. Do you love me, Jimmy?" Jimmy gulped and nodded slowly. "I... I do. I have for so long, Grian. You're just so- so perfect. I actually can't remember any time I haven't loved you. The longer I've known you, the harder I fell." Grian sighed and stepped even closer. They were close enough now that Jimmy could feel Grians uneven breath against his skin.
"I want you to have an actual feather from my wings."
Jimmy stopped breathing for a few seconds. "...what?" Grian looked up at him, his gaze sure. "I want to give you one of my feathers to wear. As a necklace or an earring, I don't care. I want one of yours too." He stood up on his tiptoes. "I want... Jimmy I love you too." Jimmy gulped, eyes filled with disbelief. "Ah, you don't- have to say that to make me feel better, I-" Grian rolled his eyes and closed the gap between them, pressing his lips against Jimmy's in a soft kiss.
Jimmy's wings flared and fluttered in surprise, before they gently wrapped around Grian, pressing a little at his back to pull him even closer.
Their kiss lasted long and when they finally parted, both panting for air, Grians eyes were soft and filled with love. "I really love you, Jimmy. Please let me actually give you one of feathers- we've loved each other for so long, I want the whole world to know." Jimmy blushed again and smiled brightly at Grian. "Yeah... Yeah, of course. So this means, we're..?" - "dating. We're dating, Jimmy." Grian filled in for him. Jimmy grinned and pulled Grian in for another kiss. They both smiled into the kiss melting against eachother.
Grian could feel, somewhere deep in his soul, in his instincts, that he would never stop loving Jimmy. They truly were made for each other, Grian was sure of it. It was a shame it had taken him this long to understand his own feelings, and he would always feel bad for keeping Jimmy waiting this long, but... It was worth it. It was oh so worth it.