aterat | [Open] Shifting Your Perceptions

Entry tags:

[Open] Shifting Your Perceptions

Who; Nida, Ignis, Mono, Open
What; Family is something Nida wishes he had, and maybe it's in reach. Also a chocobo chase
Where; Markets, Library Rooftop
When; Early April
Warnings;

I. Chocobo on the Loose | OTA
It's actually impressive, just how much a chocobo could grow in a year. Back when he'd first acquired her Hibiscus had been small enough to tuck under one of Nida's arms. These days the crimson feathered bird walked at Nida's side, her head up to his shoulder, happy on her training lead and with a small, weighted saddle on her back and full backs at her sides to help train her to the feel of weight on her. Soon enough she'd be more than large enough to start their riding training together, and Nida wasn't excited about that.

But with her increased age was coming to be a reasonable young bird.

Or so Nida thought. Being a guard, on duty, in uniform, sometimes wasn't the best thing. It meant that some children liked to play their little pranks. Which int his case meant running past Nida and cutting his lead line. Hibiscus, bothered by the sudden motion, jerked aside. And then realized that she was further away from Nida than she should be. Which meant freedom. For a moment her little bird brain considered. And then, seeing nearby melon, she strode confidently away.

"Hibiscus?" Nida said, shocked to see her walking away. He lunged for her cut lead without thinking, and she, seeing this as play, darted away with a warble.

"No, wait, come back!"

II. Afternoon Shopping | Closed to Ignis
Their schedules were such complicated things that often Nida and Ignis left their free time that would be shared together for, well, things far more interesting than basic errands. But things had been busy lately and there was a lot of things that needed buying, and Nida had just come off shift, so... Well, when he saw his husband moving among the vegetable stalls, he of course made his way over.

"Hello my gorgeous love. How are-"

Nida pauses in his way to kissing his husband's cheek when he saw what was in Ignis's hand. Spinach. That earned a cringe.

"You doing spinach stuffed in something for dinner? Promise the 'something' is potent. I prefer not to taste my cooked spinach."

Yeah, sometimes Nida was a picky eater too.

III. Heights Give Perspective | Closed to Mono
The talk with Ignis had taken a while, but in the end they had come to the same conclusion. Of the two of them, Nida would be the one to extend the initial offer. And what better time than tonight, while the two of them were celebrating the success of the young man. For tonight Mono had climbed all the way to the roof of the Library, at good speed, with no rope. Then he'd gone back down. And come back up again. While he was approaching the top the second time Nida had laid out the snacks he'd asked Ignis to prepare for the night. He'd had confidence that all of this result to the evening.

IT was something needing celebrating. So Nida pulled the small 'bento boxes' as Ignis had called them, from the bag at his side. A light evening meal, as a gift from his husband, to broach the subject.

"I'm quite proud of you, Mono. And this? Our celebration meal."

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Mono was really quite excited about his accomplishment, more excited still to have gotten to the point where Nida thought he was ready to climb without the rope security. That meant he was improving!

The kid certainly didn’t expect that there was more to the evening than the lesson. He hadn’t even expected the celebration meal! The boy tilted his head at the ‘bento boxes’ that Nida was pulling out and uncovering for them. They kind of looked familiar, honestly, like things he had seen in advertisements and on shelves of the long abandoned stores in the Pale City.

There was a happy, healthy glow to the kid’s cheeks as he sat down. Both from the warm sense of accomplishment the praise gave him, and from the healthier diet he’d been eating thanks to Ignis and the good food in this world. “Well, you’re a really good teacher! I didn’t think I’d ever get better at climbing back down the building.” He smiled. “What kinda food is this? Did Mr. Ignis make it?”

Food needed to be purchased and Ignis had a list of course before he went out. He had to be prepared and that was precisely what he was when he made his way over to the market. He'd done a half day at the Lodge and was busy with lists for ingredients for that place and home.

Home was still a work in progress and Ignis was trying to plant more herbs along with some flowers, and keep things balanced in general. Plus he still wanted make a sort of quiet 'Zen' garden spot. This had him planning a water feature for it which in his mind was shaping up to be a small moving waterfall. He was going to have to hit Jacob up for a wooden garden swing as well, which would be placed somewhere they could enjoy the garden at night which of course was going to require a nice open space for the swing and a table for snacks. Lighting would have to be a thing too, but it would be something nice and gentle like they had for their wedding.

A tree or two was a must as well and the hunters at the Lodge were working on that.

So as Ignis procured a few things he heard his husband come in and gave him that nice kiss on the cheek. But then the other's face changed from delighted to almost sulking. And the advisor smiled as he looked down at the 'offensive' spinach.

"It's about time that I restock on food for Mono as well as us darling. I do have our grocery list in my notes here as well to make sure we have enough at home." He then had to laugh slightly. "And no the spinach is not for you."

Yuki's blue chocobo was growing too and today as he was headed into work a little early, he decided to get Haru back to the stables to go socialize and do 'chocobo things'. He then paid for another week of being able to bring his chocobo back as well as providing funds for greens and meals while he was there.

It was certainly teaching him responsibility, not that he minded of course.

So he turned to head towards work. There were a lot of things that needed filing and he thought an early jump on the day would be great. He always liked getting there before anyone else did because that meant he could make some tea and relax at his desk for a little bit.

And that's when he realized he overheard Llewellyn state that he had recently found a home with his husband.

Damn it, what should he get him?

Pondering stopping at a shop first to look at gifts, he then heard a warble and saw Hibiscus running away. And then he heard Nida calling after her.

Thoughts of getting to the office early and maybe shopping fled his mind as he decided to start working on running after sensei's runaway chocobo.

"Yes, he did. He knew we were having a bit of a test today, and that I was certain you would pass. So he made us some celebration food," Nida answered with a smile. "You like his food, right?"

Ignis was always the man with a plan, and Nida was gleeful to know his love's mind raced to make things so perfect for them. And, of course, perfect for Ignis as well.

"How could you inflict spinach on my beloved student like that?" Nida asked, offering a sad look. "I would hate for him to abandon training because my love makes him eat his greens."

That sure was nice of him… But Ignis was really nice, after all. Especially with helping him make sure he had enough food and stuff. It was easy for the kid to buy bread and snacks from the market… But he was still a child, and he wasn’t particularly good at remembering to cover all the food groups or getting full meals in since he didn’t know how to cook. “How’d you know I was gonna pass? I might not have!” He responded with a surprised expression. That was the thing about tests! You never knew if you were going to pass or not…

Though, to be fair, the kid was stubborn enough (and afraid of failing) to have not given up until he did make it.

The question gets a very fast, very excited nod. “Yeah! He makes the best food, it’s always really fresh and tasty. I like what he does with all the green stuff.” He added with a serious nod. No, he wasn’t exactly sure what to call everything, but the kid sure knew how to eat it. Sometimes he might be a little uncertain of what something was if it looked strange, but since he got here? Ignis hadn’t steered him wrong when it came to trying food. Plus, getting good, unspoiled meals was kind of amazing.

"I have faith in you. I know how hard you've been working at this, I've seen how you've been learning. I'm your master. Have faith that I know what I'm doing," Nida answered with a shrug as he took out a bit of pickled radish and rice.

"We talked about you earlier today, you. Ignis and I."

"Hibiscus Stop!" Nida was shouting as he rushed after the bird. He did catch sight of Yuki moving through the crowds though. Was there a chance...?

Hibiscus also saw Yuki. He was a good person. A friend. Look at him, joining in tag! She sped up, intending to beat them both at tag.

“About me?” Mono asked curiously, digging into the food while he listened. It was pretty hard for him to not start gobbling things up between the appetite he’d built up after wearing himself out with the climbing test and the fact that he was a growing kid.

People talking about him, though, was… a little odd sounding, and part of him wondered if there was anything to worry about. “Like about the climbing lessons or about something else?” He continued a moment later, glancing up at Nida under the brim of his newsboy hat he’d pulled on after he finished climbing.

Somehow he managed to avoid tripping and running into anyone so far. But Hibiscus was definitely making him run faster than he'd had to when beating Kyo with that stupid race marathon thing that school had them do.

He'd been sick then and pushed himself because of the stupid cat turning the most mundane thing into a competition. Of course it ended up with Hatsuharu transforming into his Ox form and carrying him home on his back.

But he wasn't sick now.

"Hibiscus! Wait!" Yuki called, trying to keep pace with the bird who was beating his ass.

The bird warbled in delight at her friend calling for her.

"Yuki, go left," Nida shouted, even as he moved to throw himself at the sturdier stalls to his right that had full roofs. He would avoid people by running right over the top to catch up. Parkour was like that.

"Yes about you. About more than climbing. We care about you, Mono. Maybe we show it in different ways, but we do. It's not always weird when adults do that."

He lets his feet kick over the edge of the building, which he sat far closer to than Mono did because he was just that confident.

"And when we were talking, something sorta... came up."

He looked over at Nida who was obviously still chasing his precious chocobo, and Yuki went running with a nod at the instruction. He managed to catch sensei doing some really cool things such as leaping around on rooftops and making it look so easy even if he was sure it really wasn't.

But he had to jump over some kids and kept the chocobo in his sights even if he was sure Yuki was going to lose sight of her.

Mono actually thought it was weird, though there were different kinds of weird… People caring for him felt very weird, but it was a nice kind of weird compared to being chased around and disliked by what was left of people in his world. So he relaxed a little as he took another bite of the food, glancing at Nida again. “I think you guys are both kinda great, too.” He responded with a smile that was less unpractised than it used to be, but still uncertain.

But the guy was talking like he noticed some adults did when they were trying to figure out how to say something they weren’t sure how to say or how to approach a subject. Which, again, always counted as weird to the boy. Since he didn’t know what had come up, the boy wasn’t sure if he was supposed to interject or not. All he could do was look up from the food again, eyes curious. “What kinda something?”

"What would you think about getting to eat Ignis's food more often?"

There, it's a way to start the things. But no, that's not quite right. Damn, he was unfair to the kid there.

"Mono, we both care about you, and like you around. We'd like to invite you to see our home as a home for you as well. Another bed, another space, just a chance."

Hibiscus came near a wall, and she warked in annoyance, turning she found herself facing Yuki. Friend! He is going to catch her. She shifts from foot to foot, like she's not sure if she should run or not.

“More often than already? That’d be kinda great, but you guys live farther away now and I don’t wanna bug him for more when he’s go work and stuff.” Mono responded, still kind of confused about where this was going. Sure, more of Ignis’ cooking would be great, but the kid didn’t like imposing too much.

Then Nida continued, and Mono seemed to freeze up. That made even less sense than the offer of eating Ignis’ cooking more often. He understood they cared, of course, at least to an extent. Definitely more than he was used to from people in his world… But enough that they wanted him to live with them? At their home? That it could be his home, too?

Mono had come a long way from the days when he’d arrived. He didn’t hide his face nearly as much, and he had warmed up to people quite a bit… As much as he appreciated the quiet and the safety, the apartment even got a bit lonely sometimes. Unless, of course, Illyana’s imps were visiting him for treats. But what if things changed? What he moved into Ignis and Nida’s house and they decided they’d made a mistake, or one of them finally saw what everyone in his world seemed to? “Are you guys sure…? What if you don’t like me around more than I already am, or if I break something in your nice house?”

Yuki was thrilled to see that Hibiscus had herself up against a wall. But he knew all about cornering someone or something. So he just tried to wait to see if sensei could come to him. But if he had to lunge at her, he would.

The chocobo decided run was right, and started to dart past Yuki. Only to have Nida drop down in front of her and grab the chocobo by the bridle.

"No," he said, and he was looking not the littlest bit winded. "You silly bird."

"We're very sure," Nida answered, smiling softly. "There's no obligations with it, just another place to come and to be. Meals when they're served. A place to store your things without needing to use the dorms. A place you choose rather than one you're given. Because this IS a choice."

And he won't force it.

Mono had settled his dish in his lap, staring up at Nida with an expression that one would probably read as trying to figure out if the man meant that. Things tended to get broken around Mono, or he broke them when his abilities got out of hand. It hadn’t happened here yet, but the kid didn’t think that meant they wouldn’t. “Where would I keep my stuff? I don’t have much, I guess… So I wouldn’t take up much room?”

Because it sounded good, especially where Ignis and Nida had both been pretty great since he arrived. They accepted that he did things a little differently, even going as far to join him sometimes and helping him to improve some things, like his climbing.

What would it be like to actually… have a place he chose to call home? The apartments were given to them, as Nida said… And it was hard, sometimes, to not see the Pale City’s apartment buildings when he was walking down the halls in the evenings. Mind playing tricks like he heard things behind the doors of the unoccupied rooms, things he didn’t want to see here.

Would a house be different from that? “Are there any rules or stuff?” He asked, still a bit cautious.

"You could have your own bedroom," Nida answered. "We have space. You can decorate it as you wish of course. Make it your own space."

Rules or stuff, huh? That's interesting to ask.

"It's something the three of us would need to talk about. But we wouldn't force you out of your job or anything."

“Really?” Of course, really Mono. Where did you think they were going to put you? Under the sofa? “That might be kinda neat. I never decorated something before.” Even the apartment, since it didn’t really feel like his, and he’d been waiting for something to happen there.

Rules were important to figure out. There were rules everywhere. It was just that Mono had to figure them out on his own without actually getting to communicate with the entities in charge of places in his world. This was the first time he could actually ask, and the kid was going to be a little afraid of messing things up. “Okay, I guess we can figure that out…” He nodded thoughtfully before adding. “I’m glad I could keep my job. I got a promotion and everything. I like helping there.”

Helping… Oh. Mono glanced up at Nida again, having one more particular point to ask about. The child was going to cover pretty much everything he could think of that might make the adults change their mind. “Um… I also get kinda surprise visits from Illyana’s imps sometimes. I told her I’d help teach em to be better at stuff.” What stuff? Goodness knows. But Mono had come to think of them as friends, even if Illyana had tried to discourage that. “I don’t always know when they’re gonna appear, though.” Like when they’d shown up at the grey building, all afraid of Illyana for some reason last month.

He could have a sofa and make himself a little den behind it if he really wanted. But not under. The thing would be too low. Still, the news that he got a promotion leaves a little bloom of pride for the kid in Nida's chest. He was so happy for Mono.

"Well, I don't have a problem with that, provided they don't take things from the house if they can avoid it. Last time an imp 'helped' me they took these."

Nida fished the chain with the rings from around his neck. While he didn't wear all his jewelry when he was on work duty, he definitely put it on before coming to climbing practice. Except his wedding ring, and the pair of rings he had bought for the memory of himself and his former love. Those last two he tapped.

"But Illyana got them back for me, so it's okay if you or her can get them back. But they can't take Ignis's cooking knives or his coffee. Because between you and me, he gets grumpy without those."

Mono would undoubtedly find the idea of blanket forts and makeshift hiding places behind furniture to be rather fun, really. He already had enjoyed making snow forts over the winter.

The boy seemed to relax though, to hear that it would be alright to have the imps around. Especially since he couldn’t really discourage them now. They seemed to do what they wanted most of the time… And they clearly had decided he was a ‘safe spot’ for some reason. “Okay, I can try to make sure they don’t go stealing stuff. They really like when I give them sweets though, so it might distract them.”

It was rather hard to imagine Ignis being grumpy, but the boy nodded quickly. “I’ll make sure they stay away from his stuff. I wouldn’t wanna upset anyone with them around. I’m good at catching up to them, though, and Illyana said to let her know if they act out too bad.” So that would work out pretty well…

So he guessed… He guessed he was really going to try this out. “And I guess you guys can tell me if anything bugs you. I’m trying my best to learn better to avoid making messes or breaking stuff.”

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[Open] Shifting Your Perceptions

III. Heights Give Perspective

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