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[endscape]

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text, @swordmaster (Christening this inbox with dragons)

[wrathstrikes]

uh, so

Did you get any of those dragon eggs from that one quest

[endscape]

Ominous question. No? I didn't know there were dragon eggs being handed out at all.

[wrathstrikes]

Not handed out. The boar and I went to a cave and there was a dragon. It was dying and said we needed to take her eggs and care for them. We dropped them off with a dragon tamer and got some other supplies for them...

And I guess they're all hatching now.

[Just bringing this up out of nowhere for no reason at all. Idle chit-chat.]

[endscape]

[Felix doesn't do idle chit-chat, Adrian knows better--]

Felix.

Do you have a dragon with you right now?

[wrathstrikes]

No!

I'm just... Thinking.

[endscape]

Are you thinking about bringing a dragon home?

How big is it going to be?

[wrathstrikes]

The eggs are... Big... And the mom was... Huge.

[No comment on that first question.]

[endscape]

[Someone help him...]

Where are you going to keep it?

[wrathstrikes]

The yard maybe?

[endscape]

Just in the yard? It could at least have its own [barn??? shed????? where do you keep a dragon] shelter.

[wrathstrikes]

We could build one.

[endscape]

Oh I see, now it's our dragon.

[As if he's not going to say yes... let him have this for a moment.]

What did you name it?

[wrathstrikes]

Fine. I'll build it. And care for it.

You think I'm the kind of sap who names an egg?

I didn't commit to anything. They might all be adopted by now. But I'm going to go to the tamer just to see. Are you coming?

March 8th, after being gone 3 days

[wrathstrikes]

[Felix had told Adrian he was going on a quest with the boar, but nothing else. Waking up after death, he's unsure exactly how long it's been. He remembers dying, and nothing after that. He's physically fine, but quite tired and achey, like he's bruised all over. After speaking with Dimitri, he texts Adrian.]

Hi

I'm at the infirmary in Grey Ward, I'm ok

[Admit what happened? Ask for help? Fuck no.]

[endscape]

[It takes until the second day for Adrian to worry; a quest somewhere out as far as Felix was going could take longer than a few hours, he's sure. There are things people ask the Visitors to do here that are exceedingly complicated and difficult (he has not done any of those, for that reason), so--surely, it's fine and normal for him to not come home for two days.

The third day he worries, and Felix doesn't answer his--bird, and Adrian doesn't know what one does in this situation. Put out a missing persons ad? Go find whoever posted that quest and ask what happened? The animals are even starting to fuss, so--

Oh good, there's a message. Don't worry, Adrian can ask all the questions:]

What happened? Stay there, I'll come and get you.

[This is non-negotiable, he's already on his way. Do not fuss.]

[wrathstrikes]

[Nope, not fussing this time.]

Harpies attacked, the island broke apart, and we fell to our deaths.

[Just a quick synopsis, no need for more words.]

[endscape]

[Felix, what the fuck. Not sent: the four or so wildly emotional messages Adrian starts and then abandons, before he settles on the neutral:]

Do you need me to bring you anything?

[wrathstrikes]

I'm fine.

[A lie. But he can't think of anything Adrian could bring him that would make it better. Besides himself.

Maybe a cat. But those are at home.]

I just want to be home.

[He means their house, not HOME home in his world, which maybe is odd. He doesn't yearn for Fodlan- he hasn't since he got here. But he hadn't realized how quickly their house in Grey Ward started to feel a little bit like a home. At least, it's the place he feels most comfortable, right now.]

[endscape]

[The cats, and the literal dragon, will be all over him as soon as he's home, so he can look forward to that at least.]

Alright. Don't leave on your own, I'll be there soon.

[Even if Felix would like to keep insisting he's fine, Adrian is coming to get him anyway. Sure, Felix can walk home by himself, he's a capable adult, but simply leaving him to do that after going through such an ordeal feels terrible in a brand new, unique way that Adrian supposes only this impossible circumstance can cause. So he's on his way as quickly as he can be, hastening to find Felix once he gets to the infirmary and asks for him.

He doesn't know what to expect, but the utterly dismal look on his face when he pokes his head into view around a corner is much more predictable. There's no doubt that he's relieved to see him there, but also, oh my god. Hiii...]

Felix?

[wrathstrikes]

[Boy, would he love to be bathing in small creatures right now, especially the one that can read his mind and tell how he's feeling without him having to admit it out loud.

For once, he doesn't want to be alone. Dying was terrifying, he's still shaken, and he wants the feeling of security and safety that comes with being near someone he trusts.]

Ok.

[...]

Thanks.

[He could sleep a little more while he's waiting, but Adrian is probably worried, so he wants to be ready when he comes, to show he's well enough to be up and about. Which he is... Probably. Still, you don't just wake up from crashing into the ocean at terminal velocity as though nothing physically happened, so it's a slow process to push himself up from the bed and get dressed. He's still trying to tie his boots, sitting on the edge of the bed when Adrian arrives. He looks up at him.]

Hey.

[endscape]

[Ah, there he is, all in one piece and just tying his boots, having a perfectly normal day, at a glance. Adrian lingers in the doorway to look at him just for a moment before crossing the room and, without really thinking about it, crouching down and nudging Felix's hands away to tie the boots for him. Don't object, just sit there for a minute.]

I'm glad you're okay. You didn't answer when I tried to contact you, so...

[Well, did he assume the worst? Does that matter, when the worst actually did happen? He trails off there and shrugs; he worried, he worried quite a bit actually, he's so glad Felix is here and alive and breathing-- but they need to get home, so he can leave it at glad you're okay for now.

One more thing, first: as he straightens back up again he leans in to tug Felix into a rough hug. Just a quick squeeze, then he stands for real and looks around to see if there's anything else they need to grab. He holds a hand out to help Felix up; again, do not grumble about this.]

Let's go home.

[wrathstrikes]

[Felix is too tired to object or argue with Adrian tying his shoes. It's a little embarrassing, like he's a kid or something, but the situation kind of calls for it, so he gets it. He braces his hands against the bed's edge, holding himself up.

He can't quite tell how upset Adrian is or was about all of this. The man is good at concealing his feelings and pain, better than Felix is. He always seems calm, even when he's not. Felix would be losing his shit if the roles were reversed, but Adrian just shrugs.

But the boot-tying, and the somewhat urgent hug, betray the emotion lying beneath the casual exterior. A surprised, soft grunt escapes Felix's lungs as he's gripped- when does anyone have the audacity to hug him? And why, instead of making him angry, does it make his eyes tear?

He's barely processed what's happening, barely laid his hands on Adrian's shoulder blades, when Adrian is standing up, sticking out a hand. Felix blinks rapidly and looks away and down to try to hide his brief moment of weakness, and silently takes the hand offered. He rises to his feet with another soft grunt, shuffling forward.

He nods. Let's. He pulls his cape's fur hood up over his head to shelter from the cold, and maybe to hide himself a little, as he grips his friend's hand and allows himself to lean into him a little as they walk.]

[endscape]

[To not control his emotions is to invite mistake, Adrian knows; overconfidence into tragedy, anger into blame, hunger into shame. He could panic and wail and get angry, and then upset, and then maybe swing into some other emotions, or--

Or he could tie Felix's boots for him, and grip his hand, and take them home. If Felix doesn't leave his sight for the next--however long it takes, then he can never die, it's the perfect plan! As hard as it is to wrap his head around it, dying and coming back here; how it must feel inside and out, he couldn't imagine. He carries a kind of death around with him all the time, but he's never actually died. Probably.

Not the point. The point is Felix, and taking him home as quickly as possible, so it's the fastest route back to their house with minimal chatter from Adrian, and he doesn't let go of Felix until he's depositing him on the couch in their living room. He leaves to get a blanket and something to eat and the animals swarm Felix practically as a group; one cat to crawl in his lap, another at his side, and the dragon climbing onto the back of the couch to rest her lovely jeweled head on his shoulder.

When Adrian returns he has the world's plainest meat and cheese sandwich and a folded blanket; he sits on Felix's cat-free side and holds out the plate. The blanket can wait a minute, he supposes.]

You should eat. And then... [welllll then if he asks how Felix is doing, maybe he won't get a gruff non-answer, miracles do happen.]

[wrathstrikes]

[Maybe Adrian could teach Felix a thing or two about not acting wildly based on emotion, someday. Not today, though.

The only thing that gets him through the walk home is Adrian's arm, his steady step, and the thought of the animals at home that wait for them. Animals that, by some miracle, already care for both of them. Being alive after death is strange: he has a strong sense of gratitude, today, for things like that. For Adrian, for the animals, for their house, for the sun that glints off the snow, for the cold air on his cheeks. He's far from sentimental, but when he was about to die, it's not like there was any rational part of his brain online to say um, ACKSHULLY, you'll be brought back, so don't worry about it. No, he genuinely thought that was the end, and he felt that ending with every fibre of his being. Now, here he is: alive, with the people and animals he thought he would have to leave behind forever. He knows, now, for certain, that he would miss some things about his life here, as short a time as he's been here.

But now he doesn't have to miss them. As he falls onto the couch, they are eagerly sniffing him, climbing up around him, and Felix sighs audibly, like he's incredibly relieved.]

Hello.

[His voice is quiet and gentle and perhaps betrays a hint of his gratitude as he scritches the cats' heads and lays his head back onto Little One. The dragon's innocent relief that Felix is okay beams into his mind, softening rough edges there, and he tries not to think any bad thoughts so he doesn't worry her all over again. He just closes his eyes, petting and basking in their warmth and affection as Adrian putters around in the other rooms.

He lifts his head and takes the sandwich as it's offered.]

Thanks.

[It's objectively bland aside from saltiness, and yet, as he bites into it, he wonders if it's the best thing he's ever eaten. Maybe he's hungrier than he thought, or maybe it feels like the first time he's ever eaten food, or maybe it's the fact that Adrian made it for him. Anyway, excuse him while he wolfs half of it down before saying anything else.]

And then...?

[endscape]

[The secret is to experience lots of social shame all at the same time--

In any case, pardon Adrian for just watching Felix eat his sandwich for a bit, here. He hadn't even known what had happened to Felix until today, and that not knowing was bad enough for his heart; just how would he have gotten by if he'd been there and seen it happen? He doesn't know. But Felix is here and whole and capable of eating a crummy sandwich, and that feels nothing short of miraculous right now.

Adrian had wondered since his very first day in this place how the leaders intend to earn even a sliver of loyalty out of any of them, and now? He's beginning to think it was this, all along, the ability to put Felix back on their couch as if nothing happened. There's something sinister in there, he thinks--but he'll think more about it later.]

I don't know, [he says, picking at the folded blanket. Hm, what could be next, indeed...] Maybe you'll tell me how you're feeling.

[Maybe? Perhaps? He brought food and cats.]