Chapter Text
“Oww…”
Raphica groaned in pain when he woke up, rubbing the side of his head. He was still wearing his clothes, his feathers were a mess, and his head was pounding like a motherfucker. He was hungover like no one's business.
A voice then rang out, making Raphica flinch and whine as the sound made his head throb. It was Vence!
“Morning, Raph. Not feeling too good?”
Raphica shook his head slowly.
“Yeah, that sounds about right. You got pretty drunk last night.”
“Ah, I did, did I…? Guess that’s what I get…”
He had to say it softly; even speaking made him feel like his skull was gonna burst.
Focusing his eyes, he was able to identify his surroundings. He was currently in Vence’s nest and snuggled up in his bed while Vence himself was over at the counter making what he assumed was breakfast.
Raphica wanted to lie back down, but even moving was painful, so he tried his best to rest against the headboard.
Vence finished what he was doing and turned around, holding a cup of hearty elixir and an ice chuchu jelly pack. He sat down on the edge of the bed next to Raphica and offered them. After humming out a 'thanks', he downed the elixir in one go and held the chuchu jelly against his temple. The meds got right to work, and he relaxed his shoulders as the hangover began to subside.
“Here, you’re gonna wanna eat too.”
Vence handed him a small plate with some bread and butter once he wasn’t in as much pain. He took the food eagerly.
“Thanks. You’re a lifesaver.”
Vence watched his friend expectantly as he ate. He wanted to say something, but Raphica was the current priority, so he waited until the right moment before speaking again.
“So, Raph… do you… remember anything from last night…?”
His voice was slightly nervous, but the other Rito didn't pick up on it.
“Mhm… it was your birthday, right?”
“Yeah, it was.”
Raphica nodded, still a little groggy from having just woken up (believe it or not, he isn’t much of a morning person). There was a short pause before Vence asked him another question.
“Is there… anything else you remember…?”
Raphica took another bite and thought about it for a second before shaking his head.
“Negative. Did something happen?”
Vence hesitated, trying to find the best way to go about this.
“Well, yes. A few things happened, and I… kinda want to talk about them?”
It sounded slightly ominous, which made Raphica a bit worried.
“I didn’t hurt anybody, did I?”
“No! No, no, no. You didn’t hurt anybody, don’t worry.”
He let out a sigh of relief at that, and Vence continued.
“But, there were a couple of things that you said... You- you didn’t say anything MEAN, though, actually quite the opposite. You um…”
He nervously cleared his throat, stalling for half a second and thanking the goddesses that blush couldn’t be seen through feathers.
“You- actually, let me just tell you the whole thing-”