He was glad of the gloves before too long. His hands were callused with the hilts of sword and dagger, but saws and hammers were different beasts and rubbed his skin in different places. Jigano prided himself on his endurance, hard-earned over a dreamless Deepfrost, but the motions used to cut and place the boards were new enough that he began to ache after awhile. If Rory had not been counting on him he might have taken a break, but his pride would not let him falter while his friends labored. He pushed himself to keep pace with the hunter’s rhythm, swallowing back the yelps when the hammer slipped and struck his fingers.
He was almost pathetically grateful when Amalia stood and stretched, her stomach speaking for all of them in that moment of silence. ”Dinner sounds—“ He meant to say ‘wonderful’ but her sudden teasing caught him off guard and he trailed off to silence as she made good her escape. The look he turned to Rory might have been rueful if it wasn’t so cautious, trying to figure out how the hunter felt about her words – or rather, the knowing tone of them. There was no denying that he liked being on his own with Rory, but their friendship was far too precious to him to risk with… with things he was still afraid to put into words, lest that make them real.
Everything changes.
As so often happened when he was with the blond, words failed him. Or maybe it was just that they weren’t necessary, as Rory began to straighten up the lumber and tools and Jigano took a broom and swept the debris of their labors outside. Dusty, sweaty, and far from his best he still smiled with unself-conscious warmth when his friend reached out his hand. There was a bittersweet ache in his chest as he twined his fingers through those that were offered and walked beside his sunlight knight towards the house, but the sweetness far outweighed the bitterness, and he laughed as Isuma bounded off the woodpile to join them, reeping happily about her day’s adventures.
It had been a long, long time since he had sat down with friends for a meal. He hoped it was but the first of many more to come.
He was almost pathetically grateful when Amalia stood and stretched, her stomach speaking for all of them in that moment of silence. ”Dinner sounds—“ He meant to say ‘wonderful’ but her sudden teasing caught him off guard and he trailed off to silence as she made good her escape. The look he turned to Rory might have been rueful if it wasn’t so cautious, trying to figure out how the hunter felt about her words – or rather, the knowing tone of them. There was no denying that he liked being on his own with Rory, but their friendship was far too precious to him to risk with… with things he was still afraid to put into words, lest that make them real.
As so often happened when he was with the blond, words failed him. Or maybe it was just that they weren’t necessary, as Rory began to straighten up the lumber and tools and Jigano took a broom and swept the debris of their labors outside. Dusty, sweaty, and far from his best he still smiled with unself-conscious warmth when his friend reached out his hand. There was a bittersweet ache in his chest as he twined his fingers through those that were offered and walked beside his sunlight knight towards the house, but the sweetness far outweighed the bitterness, and he laughed as Isuma bounded off the woodpile to join them, reeping happily about her day’s adventures.
It had been a long, long time since he had sat down with friends for a meal. He hoped it was but the first of many more to come.
