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“Bro, do you think we should explore each other’s bodies?”
The golden apple dropped from Parrot’s grasp and slowly rolled away, leaving a trail of crushed snow in its wake. “…yo, what?”
“I’m just saying, now might be a good time.” Theo gestured to their surroundings. They were stranded in the middle of a tundra biome, seated around their sorry excuse of a campsite. Tracking a mysterious new group of bandits proved to be more difficult than either the King or his body guard had anticipated. After the sun had set, they were forced to stop for the night. The thick flurries of snow made it impossible to see two feet in front of them. The fire flickered dangerously low in the icy chill. Parrot quickly leaned down to grab the gapple, one of the last of their dwindling supply.
“Where did you even hear that phrase?” There was no way Theo had come up with that on his own.
Theo pointed towards the general direction of the Northern Council. “I heard some guards talking about it. They were asking if we’re really best friends and one guy was like ‘but have they explored each other’s bodies yet.’ And he’s right, bro! We’re best friends, but we haven’t explored each other yet.”
Things were starting to piece together in Parrot’s mind. “Theo, what do you think that means?”
“Preening, of course.” Theo cocked his head. “What else is it supposed to mean?”
“Uh, nothing.” Parrot winced. He didn’t have the heart to tell Theo otherwise. His best friend could be charmingly innocent at times.
“It would be a good way to stay warm right now.” Theo gestured to the campfire. “We can’t keep wasting coal and wood when we don’t know what we’ll be facing next. Plus, bro, your feathers look a mess from that chase earlier.”
Parrot swiveled around, trying to get a good glimpse of his wings. Theo was right. Leaves and debris were tangled in his green primaries from where they had brushed against the ground of the forest. Patches of wetness from the snow had caused some of his fluffier feathers to clump together, creating massive tangles. Parrot shivered slightly. The wind chill was freezing against his delicate flesh, even with the campfire going.
“Are you sure? You’ve never done it before.” Parrot asked. Normally, he preferred preening himself in the privacy of his room. The pin feathers on the underside of his wings often went untouched since he simply couldn’t reach them on his own. Preening was a very intimate act, as one puts themselves in a vulnerable position for attack. Parrot had felt reluctant to let anyone, even Theo, see him like that.
There was only one person who ever had.
But now? Something about the warmth reflected in Theo’s eyes made Parrot’s refusal die in his throat. Maybe it was the light of the campfire. But it looked more tender than embers and flame.
“Ok. Why not?” Parrot’s voice sounded before he could process what he was saying. Theo beamed at him.
“I swear I’ll do a good job! I preen mine all the time!”
“I can tell,” Parrot said teasingly. It was true. Theo’s wings always looked pristine and well-treated, even after countless messy fights. Sleek, shiny feathers that could not conceal the powerful muscle behind them. Parrot supposed it made sense for him— maintaining healthy wing condition was vital for drawn-out battles where snaggles could become a deadly liability.
“Although, I’ve never preened someone else before.” Theo scratched his head.
“Wait, what about Shoebilly?” Parrot asked. “Didn’t he train you? He’s an avian too.” He regretted those words when Theo tensed slightly.
“Yeah, the only physical touch Billy really enjoyed was throwing hands.”
Parrot gently reached out to grasp his forearm, turning Theo’s attention towards him. “You can preen me. I trust you.” Theo smiled at him.
“Sit here. So I can see what I’m doing.” Theo motioned to a spruce log by the campfire. Parrot obeyed, sitting a bit awkwardly on the log. If Theo noticed his nerves, he didn’t say anything.
“Alright, let’s get cracking,” Theo popped his knuckles. “Not literally. I promise I’ll be careful. Tell me if it hurts.”
His consideration made Parrot’s heart ache. “I will.”
Theo started near the top of Parrot’s wings, slowly sorting through the tangles while massaging the sore muscles. Parrot gave a contented sigh, prompting a satisfied huff from Theo.
He continued working his hands across the expanses of green and blue feathers. Slowly, Theo eased out Parrot’s aches and pains from the day. The sensation mixed with Theo’s body heat sent a current of warmth down Parrot’s back. His wings fluttered in delight, snow and ice momentarily forgotten thanks to Theo’s soothing touch. True to his word, he was careful. Almost too careful.
“Theo,” Parrot frowned. “It’s ok, you can go a little harder.” Theo shook his head.
“I don’t wanna hurt you. You’re pretty delicate.” Parrot reached his wing out to smack against Theo’s upper arm.
“I’m not made of glass,” he rolled his eyes. “Come on bro, I can hardly feel anything right now.”
“Alright, you asked for it.” Theo applied more pressure to the stretch of skin above the wing joint, easing the tightness that had built up in the area. His fingers felt so powerful and so, so warm. Parrot gave a small chirp of pleasure. They both froze instantly.
“Can… can we ignore that?” Parrot was bright red. He buried his face in his hands.
“Uh, yeah, if you want.” Theo flushed the same shade. He added something under his breath.
“What was that?” Parrot’s ear twitched.
“I was just saying… it-it was… good though.” Theo mumbled. “You can chirp, it’s ok. So then I know I’m doing well.”
“Oh.” Just when he thought he couldn’t get any redder. At least Parrot was feeling very warm now. “It’s just a little embarrassing, bro.”
“Don’t be embarrassed, it’s natural.” As if to prove his point, Theo pressed his hands firmly above Parrot’s wing joint, prompting another chirp from his best friend.
“T-Theo!” Parrot gasped, quickly clamping a hand over his mouth. He whirled around, mustering a fierce glare at him. “Stop doing that!”
“I’m just trying to preen you, bro!” Theo’s pleased grin easily gave away his true intentions. “Trust me, it feels better this way.”
He continued pressing against Parrot’s sore muscles, feathers rustling around his touch. It was as overwhelming as it was comforting. Theo’s breath, his warmth, the caress of his hands, even his scent combined with woodsmoke from the campfire. Clenching his eyes shut, Parrot bit down on his lip, failing to keep more muffled chirps from escaping. His fingernails dug into the spruce log. The sting of splintering wood helped ground him. Concentrating on the pain kept his mind from drifting towards Theo, Theo, Theo.
The calloused hands made their way down his wings, pressing hard on each feathered tendon. Theo expertly wound his fingers through the tangled masses of down, shaking them loose without causing painful snags. Parrot could’ve cried.
“You can chirp, bro.” Theo repeated. He had the familiar cockiness in his voice that made Parrot both weak in the knees and tempted to punch him. “I know you want to.”
Well, now Parrot felt even more determined to keep quiet. He bit down harder on his lip, almost enough to draw blood as he shook his head firmly.
“Ok, don’t say I didn’t warn you.” Theo had reached the underside of Parrot’s wings, where those forgotten pin feathers waited patiently. Parrot let out a small whimper when he felt something ghost against the sensitive sheaths of keratin. He flinched away from the sensation.
“Try not to move,” Theo murmured. Suddenly, he grabbed onto Parrot’s waist, holding him firmly in place. The loud chirp Parrot let out was humiliating, but his embarrassment was drowned out by the blood rushing in his ears. Theo’s hand practically burned through his shirt, into the bare flesh of his waist. Would it leave a searing mark? It felt as though it should.
“I haven’t preened there in a while…” Parrot said quickly, a desperate note making its way into his voice. Theo nodded in a reassuring manner.
“Don’t worry. I’ll be gentle.”
He carefully lifted a singular pin feather from the underside of Parrot’s right wing. The keratin flaked off, bit by bit under the weight of his fingers. At first slowly, then all at once, the sheath fell away to reveal a gleaming blue-green feather. It ruffled in the wind, like taking a first breath of fresh air after years of suffocation. Parrot let out a gasp of pleasure he didn’t know he was holding back.
“Beautiful,” Theo whispered softly, reverently.
He continued to coax the pin feathers on the underside of Parrot’s wings out of their shells. Hands accustomed to fighting and destruction worked slowly across the sensitive flesh. Not clumsy, but hesitant. Much too caring.
And much too loving.
To his horror, Parrot found himself stifling a sob instead of a chirp. His eyes burned as he fought tears that threatened to divulge his weakness. The spruce log splintered in Parrot’s crushing grip, making a cracking noise that caught Theo’s attention.
“Hey, you good?” He spoke quietly, as if addressing a wounded animal.
“Theo,” Parrot whispered in response. “Theo.”
“Yeah?” Theo knelt in front of the log and took Parrot’s hands in his own, brushing away the shards of wood. His thumb worked soothing circles on his skin. “I’m right here. What’s wrong?”
Parrot shook his head, stubborn and silent even as the damning tears finally escaped his eyes. It made Theo chuckle lightly.
“Does it feel nice?”
Wordlessly, Parrot nodded.
“Do you want me to keep going?”
Again, he nodded.
“Tell me if it’s too much.”
“Theo.” Parrot said again, voice raw with emotion.
“I know.” Theo worked yet another pin feather and gently stroked the skin underneath. “It’s ok.”
Parrot’s mind went blank as Theo preened his wings. He no longer held back his chirps and sobs, letting them flow freely from his lips. Rather, he tried to burn the feeling of the warm touch into his memory. One by one, his long neglected pin feathers emerged under Theo’s careful loving hands. Parrot squeezed his eyes tightly shut. Part of him wanted to remain there forever. The other, more rational part reminded him that there were bandits to catch, duties to fulfill, a server to save. The dissonance tore at his consciousness until he could no longer think straight, vision dancing with the darkness behind his pupils. It threatened to consume him wholly when he felt a hand ruffle his hair.
Parrot opened his eyes, blinded by the sudden light of the campfire. He blinked away the tears to see Theo gazing down at him with an indescribable expression.
“Hey buddy.” Theo’s smile rivaled the glow of the flames. “You awake?”
“Yeah,” Parrot croaked. “Am fine.”
“Are you sure?” Theo ruffled his hair again. “It looked like you were gonna pass out there for a second. Got me all worried.”
“Felt nice.” Parrot brushed furiously at his eyes. “Thank you.”
“Anytime, man.” Theo got up, stretching his back with a low groan. “Glad I finally got to do that.”
“Finally?” Parrot repeated. Clarity was beginning to return to his addled brain. His focus on the world around him sharpened into view. Theo grinned at him with utter fondness, cheeks tinted unusually pink. Maybe from the warmth of the fire or the biting cold of the snow.
“Yeah, I’ve been wanting to preen you since we first met in the Farlands. I was so excited to meet another avian. But it felt weird to ask cause we didn’t know each other that well back then.” Theo took a seat next to him. Parrot was keenly aware of the warmth of his arm brushing against his own.
“Well, we’re best friends now, bro. So, I guess it’s only fair that we’ve explored each other’s bodies now too, right?” Parrot chuckled.
“Oh, that? That was just preening.” Theo leaned closer until his face was mere inches away. Parrot could count every freckle, patterned like stars across the canvas of his skin. It was mesmerizing. Theo’s eyes gleamed with something sharper, more… carnal. His lips stretched into a shameless smirk. “But I would love to actually explore your body sometime.”
Parrot’s jaw dropped open. Theo stood up, looking more smug than a cat who got the cream.
“I’m gonna grab some wood for the campfire.” He started towards the spruce forest before turning around and pointing two finger guns at Parrot. “And when I get back, I’m gonna tell you exactly how I plan on exploring your body.”
Parrot flushed bright red as Theo laughed and ran off. Huffing in embarrassment, he brought his knees to his chest and curled his wings inwards over himself, forming a protective cocoon from his racing thoughts. Even so, the phantom touch of Theo’s hands ghosted over the undersides of his wings, through his freshly fluffed pin feathers, and down the sensitive tips of his primaries. Parrot let out an involuntary shiver. He wouldn’t be forgetting the feeling of being preened anytime soon. Not that he wanted to.
Rather, Parrot eagerly anticipated Theo’s return. And the promise of all sorts of new touches.