Chapter Text
The first time it happened, it was almost midnight.
Aventurine was getting ready to sleep when he heard an owl hooting. Soon, the hoot was followed by scratching and pecking at the window, each second grew more impatient and angrier. At this point, it was impossible to ignore. Sighing, he went and opened the curtain.
His eyes met with a giant owl.
The owl gave him a short hoot, as if reprimanding him for wasting his time. Those inhuman eyes conveyed disapproval and disappointment so intense it almost offended him. It reminded him of a certain someone.
No, wait. Aventurine stepped a bit closer. It does resemble him. A lot. Its feathers were violet, just like his hair. They have the same eye color too. The owl even had his attitude. Impatient and grumpy. How cute—
“Yeah, no.”
He pulled the curtains shut.
Aventurine must’ve been really tired. What’s next? An eagle who looked like Topaz? He should just go to bed.
The darkness and oblivion of slumber almost took him when that damned bird started to hoot, scratching and pecking the window. Even more aggressive and persistent than before. Aventurine’s attempt to muffle it all with pillows failed terribly. Ugh.
“Fine, fine! I gave up. It’s your win, little friend.” With a sigh, Aventurine opened the curtains and met face-to-face with the owl. It gave him a very smug hoot. The bastard. “Do you want to come in?”
Another irritated hoot. Do you really have to ask something so obvious?
Letting a wild animal in was admittedly not the brightest idea. Hygiene and several safety issues. But who can blame him when the owl was this cute? Its grumpiness made it more adorable.
The said owl gave him a long and annoyed hoot. Its wings are flapping angrily.
“Okay, okay! So impatient, sheesh.”
The moment the windows unlocked, it flew past Aventurine. It all happened so quickly. Before he knew it, the damned bird was already in his bed. The owl lay down on its back, spreading its wings like he owned the place. It let out a long and content hoot before closing its eyes.
Aventurine couldn’t believe this.
His bed was being hijacked by a bird.
Aventurine stared at the annoyingly cute owl. How dare it look so innocent. The owl made it hard for him to find it in his heart to chase it out. Damn it.
…Fine. Whatever. He’d do it in the morning.
“You little bastard.” He said fondly.
Out of pettiness, Aventurine ruffled the feathers in the tummy of his little hijacker. Ah, it was as soft as it appeared. He didn’t get to relish it for long, however, as the owl hooted angrily and slapped his hand away. It gave Aventurine a very vicious glare before went back to sleep.
Aventurine decided to not tease the little friend any further just for how adorable that glare was.
“Still, the more I look at you, the more you look like him…”
That was the last thing he said before Aventurine turned off the lights.
***
“For the last time, Gambler, wake up.” The voice was demanding and impatient. “Do not waste my time any longer than this. My patience does have its limit.”
A harsh shake on his shoulder.
“Aventurine.”
The shaking became harsher.
“All right, all right. I’m awake. See—?” Aventurine opened his eyes.
Beside him, is the renowned, the one and only, dr. Veritas Ratio. A scholar with many achievements. His dear friend and colleague. No, that’s not what he should focus on. Oh, no, no. instead, there was a far bigger problem-
“Why are you here?” He asked, feeling the rasp in his voice.
“That’s what I’m about to ask you.”
How would I know?!
Wide awake now, he assessed the situation.
The doctor was in his room, in his bed. And, Aeons, as if it couldn’t get any worse, Ratio was stark naked, only covered by a blanket. His blanket. It took all of his willpower to not screech pathetically. Should he escape? While Ratio was indeed stronger and faster, should they start a chasing game, his shield should hold him off for a while. Ratio definitely couldn’t chase him far, especially because of his state of clothing. Or lack of. Yeah, let’s run—
No, no, no, calm down. He’s an adult, so he should behave like one. But, to be fair, it was a hard feat to do when a naked, grown man was staring impatiently at you. For the first time in his life, Aventurine truly sympathizes with the students who have to put up with this man.
“Well?” Ratio demanded. He crossed his arms, waiting.
“Uh…” Aventurine tried to remember what he had done last night. Yesterday he was in his office the whole day, with piles and piles of paperwork. All he remembered was coming home late and the damned owl. Wait, owl.
“Where’s the owl?!”
“The owl? Are you perhaps referring to Owlbert?” Ratio frowned, “While I know you have your own, ah, solution to problems, I advise against dragging others to this predicament—“
“No, no, no! I mean, a real owl! The bird!” This may be far-fetched, but he was desperate. “Before I went to bed, this owl insisted on letting it in. If it’s not here right now, then that meant someone has-“
“Ah.” Ratio cleared his throat. There was a hint of sheepishness when he said, “There’s no need to continue. I have figured out the reason.”
“Huh?”
“The owl that you mentioned, that would be me.”
“How?!”
“It was a… failed experiment. That’s all you need to know." What kind of experiment could turn someone into an entirely different species, dearest doctor? But before Aventurine could say anything else, Ratio kicked him off of the bed.
“I need some time and privacy to make myself presentable. I hope you don’t mind.”
And that was how Aventurine got kicked out of his own bedroom.
What a way to start a morning.
Decided that there was nothing he could do until the other man went home, Aventurine laid down on his couch. He never woke up this early so he was at a loss of what to do with his spare time. Going back to sleep was out of the question while Ratio was still here. He’s not even sleepy anymore. What took Ratio so long, anyway—
The door slid open.
“I decided to borrow your clothes. I’ll return it as soon as possible.”
“Haha, who do you think I am? There’s no need for that, doc—” Aventurine choked by his own spit, coughing. “No, wait—! Are you really—are you going to wear that?”
“I know, Gambler. This color doesn’t suit me. But in this kind of situation, one can’t be finicky. Anything will make do.” Ratio frowned at him, “are you fine?”
No. Most definitely not. In fact, he could feel his sanity crumbling.
The thing was, Ratio couldn’t be more wrong. The color suited him. Almost any color suits him. Also, if the color didn’t suit him, his pretty face would save him anyway, so that was certainly not the problem here.
No. To his absolute horror, Ratio had chosen his pajamas. His pajamas. Out of all of the clothes he had—
Just how could Ratio make a perfectly innocent pajama look so... so indecent?
His pajamas were several sizes too small for Ratio. It was too short on him. Far too short. Aventurine could see his bare waist from miles away. As if it wasn’t bad enough, it was too tight. He could see how the fabric strained in his biceps and, ah, several other places. Look at those poor buttons! They were struggling! If he was a slightly weaker man, the sight alone would have him killed of bloodloss because of sheer nosebleed—
“I apologize for the inconvenience. I’ll make sure to make it up to you. Goodbye.”
Oh, the way his heart just dropped.
“Where are you going?!”
“Home. Obviously.” Ratio, oblivious to his mental crisis, looked at him as if Aventurine was the unreasonable one. “I’m sure you know that I have a busy schedule. I have to prepare for a class in a few hours. Now, if you excuse me—"
“Wait!” Aventurine grabbed his wrist, almost desperate. He didn’t know why, but for some inexplicable reasons, it felt very, very wrong to let Ratio go out looking like that. It’s just wrong. “The colour looks reaaaally ugly on you, doc. Give me a second, I’ll find something that’ll suit you more.”
“Ugly—?!“
Luckily, Ratio stayed. Good.
Well, of course, not without his usual complaints.
“Time is ticking, gambler.”
“Do keep in mind that I’m a busy man, Aventurine. Unlike you.”
“Why, pray tell, are you always so eager to waste my time?”
But, despite his harsh words, Ratio didn’t move a step from his spot. It was hilarious, in a way.
“Something the matter?”
“No, not at all, doc. Ah, found it!” From the very bottom of the wardrobe, he pulled a dark blue sweater. While it’s still way too small for Ratio, it will at least cover anything that needs to be covered.
“Here, doc. I believe this will suit you more.”
The doctor stood still. Frown furrowed his eyebrows.
“Doc?”
Still no reaction. If anything, his frown grew deeper.
“Hellooo? Care to share what’s on your mind, Ratio?”
“I’m just curious.” With how long Ratio hesitated, it almost seemed that he was nervous. “…Is it that bad? Enough for you to deem it ugly?”
Ah. Perhaps calling him ugly in the face was not the best decision. Even so…
Aventurine couldn’t help but take one last look at the man in front of him. It was still as scandalous as he remembered. How the neckline revealed so much yet so few, almost encouraging the onlooker to imagine. How the fabric stopped just above Ratio’s belly button, exposing his abs and waist. How the pants hugged this thigh and buttock—
Aventurine looked him dead in the eye as he gave Ratio a big fat lie: “So ugly that it hurts my eyes.”
…Perhaps that was why Ratio slammed the door in his face as he left. Well, to be fair, he kind of deserved that. At least the pajamas were now safely secured in his arms.
Aventurine knew he was being ridiculous. Ratio was more than capable of taking care of himself. He wasn’t some pure defenseless virgin maiden. Definitely not defenseless, at least. The doctor was a capable fighter as much as he was a scholar. There are countless testimonies from his poor students of how deadly a piece of chalk could become on his hand. Aventurine even witnessed it firsthand in combat. He knew it all and yet…
A heavy and long sigh.
It was, undoubtedly, an awkward morning. He didn’t know how he should face Ratio later.
…It turned out not to be his immediate concern. Apparently, Veritas Ratio was the type of man to bear a grudge.