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The nights were balmy at the Bamboozlers’ headquarters even though they were situated on top of a hill. Scar appreciated that a lot as their bed - their nest, really - and all of their holdings, were scattered among the cherry trees, very much outdoors. Between Snails and Red names, neither of them had had time to build a real shelter since they set up camp, but they did their best to make it feel homey. Scar built a cozy campfire for their meetings, Lizzie decorated the place with giant parrots, and Jimmy sheltered the top of the mountain with a forest of bamboo.
Jimmy was also the one who built the bed. They had only one but he made it extra large so the three of them could comfortably settle in, and with his avian instincts at play, said bed quickly turned into a nest. A big nest, with a big mattress made of pink wool. And honestly it was one of the coziest beds Scar ever had the opportunity to try.It was late in the night now, and the moon was slowly reaching its peak in the sky. It was the only light source in the surroundings, wrapping everything in a silvery blue shade. Scar laid awake in the nest, watching his two sleeping companions cuddled up together.
Jimmy was pushed against the side of the nest, unfortunate enough to have been chosen by Lizzie as her cuddle buddy of the night. Carelessly as a cat, she was splayed between her two teammates, holding onto Jimmy as she would a teddy bear, her feet resting on Scar’s shins. But this didn’t bother the latter. He appreciated their company and even clung to these moments of close proximity. It felt fresh. It felt new. Especially after what seemed an eternity of loneliness in the sunflowers field.
In another world.
He watched as one of Lizzie’s wings twitched for a second, probably from something in her dreams.
The wings were a new thing too. Jimmy, of course, had always been an Avian, even if his wings had always been too short for him to fly. But they changed in color when they arrived in this world and settled on the cherry trees hill. The solar yellow of his feathers were now mixed with a beautiful sky blue. Lizzie got a set of pink and blue wings, and Scar got his own as well, in a nice, rich shade of brown. They were all useless though as they didn’t allow them to fly. It was forbidden anyway.
So Scar had chosen to hide his. It was easy enough to tuck them under his shirt and never think about them. Or the other topic they reminded him of, and that he would rather not think about.But that was why he was awake, right? Because even if no wings up there were as red, or as glorious as his, Scar’s pillow still smelled like waffles when it definitely shouldn’t.
And that puzzled him deeply.
Once upon a time it would have been normal to wake up smelling waffles all around him. But in this world, that man had decided he didn’t want to have anything to do with Scar apparently. It was the man who aggressively chased him away when he was looking for friends, the one who had held him at a distance since then, and with whom he was now at war with.
However, worse than the puzzlement, was the wonder. The terrible, insidious hope. The question that turned his brain inside out every time he went to bed, assailed by the smell of his shampoo. Will he come back? He never came at night or Scar would have known. But he had definitely been there recently, for a nap maybe, or the smell would have faded away.The moon continued its ascent in the deep blue sky, and the tiredness was rapidly catching up to Scar. He was about to give in to the appealing call of sleep, when a soft rustling of feathers startled him back to full awareness. It wasn’t coming from any of his teammates, so that could only mean one thing.
He turned on his side, away from the others, gently shoving away Lizzie's feet, to look in the direction of the oh so familiar sound. He made a show of not appearing too eager as he greeted the silhouette in a whisper.“Well, hello there”, he said with a grin, propping his face up on his hand in a theatrical pose, to fake the energy level he didn’t have “Fancy seeing you here!”The other didn’t respond, allowing Scar to take in more of his appearance. From this point of view, Grian looked taller than he really was. Unlike Jimmy, he didn't inherit the tall gene of the Avian species, but maybe that was why he was able to fly. His large, functional wings were spread wide upon his landing. In the moonlight they looked dark gray instead of red, and were speckled with bright, purple constellations. Which was… definitely a new feature… But before Scar could take a better look at it, the Avian tucked them neatly behind his back.
That’s when it struck him. Grian came here flying. They weren’t allowed to fly in the Games, and Grian wasn’t one to break the rules. He looked up to his face, perplexed, but Grian’s expression was purposefully neutral, even through the blue darkness surrounding them. So Scar added to his act.“Are you here to explain why my bed smells like you, then?” he prodded, mischievous, his voice still low “Because I’m pretty sure you didn’t answer the last time I asked you, and then you declared I was your worst enemy, so it doesn’t make sen-”
“Scar.”His voice was barely above a whisper, and yet it sliced through Scar’s tirade like a sharp knife.“Please stop talking…” he said softly, closing his eyes briefly.It was too soft. Very uncharacteristic of him.
Grian was made of fierce shouts and bright laughs. He loved having control and yet he was as chaotic as an explosion, as merciless as the sun in the desert. He was the fire to Scar’s dynamite.In another world.He’s rarely been soft, or vulnerable (never in this world), he rarely showed his wounds, and Scar has never seen him tired. Not like he was now, his eyes locked on Scar in a silent plea, exhaustion written all over his body.
It was all unusual, and yet Scar knew exactly what he had to do.
With a sigh, he scooted backward on the bed to leave room in front of him, and opened his arm as an invitation.Grian immediately moved closer, eagerly climbing in the bed, in the warmth Scar left for him. Just as eagerly, he slotted himself against Scar’s chest, a hand grabbing a fistful of his shirt, and he tucked his head in the small of his neck as if he belonged here.
Scar thought that he might.
He breathed in Grian’s hair deeply, drowning himself in the sweet scent. Gently, he wrapped his open arm around him. He carefully avoided his wings, even though he knew how soft they felt under his hands. This wasn’t the time for that. His Avian let out a deep sigh, and slid his own arm around Scar to hold him back.
For a moment, they held still, basking in each other's presence. Scar’s heart felt full in a way he hadn't been aware it was missing pieces in the first place. Grian was warm in his arms, alive and real. It’d been so long.“I miss you”The admission came as a surprise. Scar looked down to the mop of hair who just muffled his words in his neck. He chuckled.“You know, if you didn’t declare war upon me every morning, maybe you wouldn’t”
“You killed me, idiot!” Grian retorted, looking up at him. There was a shadow of a smile on his lips. “Of course I’m gonna be angry”
“You don’t have to be,” Scar shrugged innocently. “I was never angry at you all the times you killed me before… It’s just how the game works”Grian smile fell instantly. A flash of purple passed through his eyes.“You remember.”It was not a question. Every Winner remembered.“Yes,” Scar answered anyway, “I remember all the Games.”Grian’s expression morphed through hurt and guilt before he hid it again in Scar’s chest. His arm held him tighter and it felt like an apology, a desperate plea for forgiveness. But Scar had nothing to forgive him for. He moved his hand to feathery hair, and carefully threaded his fingers through honey strands.“I missed you too, Light of my Life” he mumbled as he closed his eyes.Scar felt so relaxed, he could have fallen asleep. But Grian was right there, in his arms, and he didn’t seem ready to sleep at all. Once he got over his emotional turmoil, his mood lightened up a bit. His hand eventually crept up on Scar’s back, and found the lump of the wings hidden under his shirt. Grian gasped.“I knew it!” he exclaimed in a whisper, “you have wings!”Scar laughed quietly. “Well, yeah… but they’re useless, so I hide it”
Grian clicked his tongue. “This is stupid. And it can’t be too comfortable, either”
“Heh,” Scar shrugged it off amusedly, “what can I say: I’m not a comfortable guy”
Grian raised an eyebrow at him “I beg to differ…”Had he been a little less tired, Scar would probably have blushed. The Avian’s hand moved from the atrophied wings to the front of Scar’s chest. He dragged it over his pec, thoughtfully. Scar admired him, reconnecting with his memories of the desert. He remembered the similar nights when they stayed awake in bed, talking until dawn, the openness of Grian’s expression, the impossibly soft feathers under his fingers…
The Avian hummed, reminding him where he was. He hooked his hand behind Scar’s neck and looked up at him.
“You used to not wear any shirt at all”, he finally said, mournfully.It took Scar all he had in him to not burst out laughing and risking awakening the others.“I thought you hated that” he managed to let out, keeping his laughter in.
“And I was lying” Grian stared directly into his eyes, enjoying Scar’s struggle with unhidden glee.Scar had to look away for a moment, to gather his composure.
When he finally managed to calm down a bit, he looked back at Grian, while sliding his hand down to his hip.“Well, I think I have a solution for this” he let out in his deepest voice while closing in on Grian’s face.
“Oh, Void, no you won’t!”The voice rose up from behind Scar and startled them both. They looked over his shoulder, to meet the angry eyes of a very much awake Lizzie. She even sat up to look down on them.“You guys,” she started in a furious tone, “are not as subtle as you think you are!”Scar winced. He had forgotten Lizzie was a light sleeper. “Sorry Lizzie,” he mumbled sheepishly.“And!” she continued “if you guys intend to get frisky, you should probably find a hotel room or something.”Scar tried, he really tried to feel sorry for her, or even ashamed about their behavior. But the occasion was too good to miss it out. “Okay but… I don’t think anybody built a hotel yet…”Lizzie gave him a jaded look, while Grian burst out laughing. “I’m going to end the night in my husband’s car,” She said as she stood up, “Good luck, Jimmy.”The other man, who had kept his silence until then, faking being asleep, suddenly rose in panic. “Wait! Lizzie, no!”The woman walked away, without even a look behind her. Grian laughed even louder as Jimmy desperately watched her leave. There was a gentle push against Scar’s shoulder, and he didn’t resist, letting the Avian lay him on his back and wrap himself unabashedly over him.“Seems like you found yourself in a pickle, Timmy…” He said joyfully.“I hate you”, was the venomous answer “Both of you.”