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The Aranara are going to love this, isn’t that what people said when it rained? They had been listening to it all day—rain taps against the glass playing the living room windows like they were an instrument. Kaveh may have had a Dendro Vision but he wasn’t an Aranara, downpour made him feel like there was something productive he needed to be thinking about—work, organization, research, only he was… tired. He had plopped himself on the couch in an effort to actively recharge, but with the rainy rhythm at his ears he couldn’t even keep his eyes closed.
He rolled over to find something else to give his attention to. Alhaitham was sitting on the opposite couch. If the scribe were to be believed he found the rain soothing; book in nose and warm drink in hand he seemed to be telling the truth. It made Kaveh want to get closer in the hope that the serenity would rub off on him.
He remained on his couch, kicking his slippers off in a desperate attempt to get more comfortable. If it wasn’t for his lack of energy he would have been drawing up new designs. Creating anything in a bleary state of mind wouldn’t result in something of high quality. First he had to rest. He didn’t need to rush.
Alhaitham took another sip. Kaveh wished that his lips were touching him instead of the hardened clay.
Come over here he chanted in his head, hoping that Alhaitham would eventually invite him.
Maybe Kaveh could have walked over.
He squinted. The small title letters on the cover were a blur, all he could make out was red on gold lettering. As Alhaitham flipped the pages Kaveh imagined he was caressing him instead, soft and gentle.
Maybe the rain was calming.
A bright flash hit the room. Kaveh remained still, thunder and rain often went hand in hand after all. The spilled drops of tea on his roommate’s pants were proof that Alhaitham had not expected it.
“Did you burn yourself?” Kaveh asked while he sat up.
“No, no, it has already cooled off.” Alhaitham wiped the pages and then his leg. He moved to turn his earpieces on, before he could drone out the next bang Kaveh managed to get a few words in.
“You can listen to me instead of your music.”
“You think you’d be more entertaining?” his voice carried a buried smirk. “I doubt you’ll speak in a tone that’s more pleasing.”
“I can tell you a nice story.”
Alhaitham looked to the window. His face lit up—another flash. “Go ahead then.”
Kaveh didn’t have anything rehearsed, he had to make it up as he went. As his nail scratched the couch’s wooden arm he tried to find the first words.
“The story… is set in Apam Woods, where it’s rumored that Aranara live in tiny straw-build houses on top of lofty trees.” Kaveh looked around the room for inspiration. “One day, a little boy with gray hair found himself in the forest in desperate need to find a new teapot for his sister, who needed it for the medicine her doctor had prescribed to her.”
“If the boy needed a teapot what is he doing in the woods?” Alhaitham asked while he put his book down.
Kaveh rolled his eyes. “It’s just a fictional story, it’s not supposed to make sense.”
“Even though it’s fictional, you need a certain amount of realism or it will take your listener out of the story.”
“Fine, fine,” Kaveh complied. “The boy was looking for a special type of mushroom then, to cure his sister’s illness. While he walked across the forest floor he spotted all kinds of different mushrooms, some big, some small, some thin and some thick.”
“Are you sure this is supposed to be a story for children?”
“Can you stop interrupting me? And I never said it was supposed to be a story for children, it’s a story for you.”
Another flash hit the living room.
After spilling more tea Alhaitham put his drink down. He rubbed his dry leg twice, seemingly trying to sooth himself. “In this storm I can’t hear you very well from where you’re sitting. You should get a little closer.”
Finally. Kaveh crawled onto Alhaitham’s couch. He got as close as he could without touching. Then, he continued.
“Sadly, none of the mushrooms growing on coarse bark looked like the ones his sister needed. He was about to give up before a voice came from one of the bushes. A green creature no bigger than a seelie spoke to him in a cautious voice, ‘You’ll find the mushrooms you are looking for high in the trees. Climb up and you’ll be able to cure your sister.’”
Another bang of thunder. Alhaitham remained still like he already braced himself, Kaveh told while he still had his attention, “The boy thanked the creature for their help and took his shoes off to get a good grip. He climbed and climbed, the plants on the forest floor now small as moss. Halfway through it started to rain, making it harder and harder for the boy to grip onto the bark.”
“You’re trying to distract me from the weather outside by putting it into your story?”
“Fine,” Kaveh exclaimed as he threw his hands in the air. “I’ll stop. You can listen to your music or whatever.”
“No. I want to hear the rest of it.”
Kaveh looked at him, wholefully unamused, he dipped his hand in the lukewarm tea Alhaitham had been drinking to drip some of it onto Alhaitham’s hair as he continued the story. “The boy could feel the rain pouring down on him—” He blew against Alhaitham’s face,“—and a strong wind hit his back. He knew then that he was going to fall to his death—that he’ll never be able to get his sister the medicine.” Lighting flashed accompanied by rings of thunder. “The boy accepted his fate. How could he ever win against the forces of the Anemo, Electro and Hydro Archon? Even the God of Geo wouldn’t take pity on him if he were to hit the ground. Right as he was about to give up hope he noticed the green creature from before flying next to him.”
“Aranara can’t fly. That’s ridiculous.”
“Yes they can,” Kaveh spat. “They use the—the leaves on their heads—” he spun a halo around his head, “—as propellors.”
“If you say so.”
“Ah, hmm—” he hummed trying to find the next sentence. “Now I forgot where I left off. Damn it, Alhaitham. Couldn’t you wait until after the climax?”
“There was an Aranara flying—”
“Right, right. The Aranara told him that they could use the… special Aranara power to carry him all the way to the highest branch, but… because of all the strength it would take the Aranara might not remember the boy anymore once they reached the top. So, the Aranara asked the boy if he would remind them who he was after. The boy agreed, and the Aranara used their power to fly him high into the trees where many mushrooms grew. And, ahh—the boy reminded him,and said he wished to return the favor one day.” The weather outside slowly started to calm down. Good, because he was running out of story. “When the boy collected enough mushrooms he had one last problem to face. How was he going to get down? The Aranara had already used their powers.” He looked around the room again in the hope of finding some last bits of inspiration.
Alhaitham had already come up with an idea. “Whenever it rains in Apam Woods the water piles up. That could be enough to break the fall.”
“Ah, yes!” Kaveh said with a smile. “The boy jumped down into the water with a bag full of mushrooms, waved his new friend goodbye, and went home to give the medicine to his sister. She recovered and they lived happily ever after.”
Kaveh put his head to rest on a pillow, his feet found his roommate’s legs as he reveled in reaching the end, proud of his little story.
Alhaitham had some more questions.
“So what’s the message behind this story?”
“Message?” His eyes shot open. “Not every story needs a message. Some are just for entertainment.”
“So it’s inauthentic.”
“It’s not inauthentic!” Kaveh sprang up to poke Alhaitham’s chest. “It was sincere and told from the heart.”
“I see.” He pulled him a little closer. “Then maybe it would be more accurate to give the boy some blond hair.”
“It wasn’t a self-insert either.”
“Wasn’t it?” Alhaitham looked at a pouting face and softly played with a blond lock. “Then I’m assuming you’ve never been helped by a green Aranara.”
Nice as being close was it rarely came without the desire to push away. The thunder had stopped, Alhaitham could comfort himself just fine.
“You tell me a story then,” Kaveh said. “Because you’re such an expert.”
“I’ll tell you a non-fictional story.”
“Alright.” Kaveh leaned into him as his feet dug inside the pillows for warmth. With his head on Alhaitham’s chest he could hear his heartbeat steadying.
“Once, a boy found himself in the House of Daena. Close to him chatted some other students, but their conversations weren’t interesting enough for him to join in. Then, the most beautiful person he had ever seen walked up to him, concerned about his lonesomeness, and asked him—”
“Please… I was there, I know what happened. Unless you can tell me how it’s going to end I don’t want to hear it. I hate cliffhangers, you know that.”
“I can’t tell you how it’s going to end. But, I can tell you that I like the beginning, it’s my favorite story.” Alhaitham smiled, his eye squinting. It was a rare sight. He was happy, generally, he had to be, but visible joy on his face—you’d have a hard time spotting it outside of the walls of their house. He might look young for a long time, a gray head with few wrinkles from seldomly training the muscles of his face.
Kaveh turned away. “You’re too cheesy.”
A hand ran throughout his hair again, soft… and soothing as his thoughts quelled. He had… tired.. himself out trying to entertain Alhaitham. And… he realized… he could fall asleep after all, right… there.
Anther brush of his hair, knuckles soft against his cheek. “You like cheese.”
“Yeah…” he yawned, “in… moderation.”