cashewlater | ic inbox @ hotel caelum;

[ with a nod, cyno hands over the basket. and if tighnari is going to be fussy about the fact that cyno asked him to lean on him, well.. he's going to be even more fussy in a moment, because the moment the doors slide open to the desert floor, cyno is sweeping tighnari right up into his arms, bridal style.

they're of similar height, but cyno is a heinously strong man, even when he isn't channeling hermanubis. lifting tighnari is easy, for him. he strides onto the sands with the fox in his arms, moving quickly, not only to get tighnari out of the sun as fast as possible, but so he can see to that ankle soon, too. ]

I'm sure you want to protest, but it'll be faster this way.

[ he shifts the basket in his free hand, ready to step forward as the doors slide only to be caught completely off guard. he yelps in surprise as his body is swept right up, almost dropping the basket until he adjusts his grip to secure it firmly with his other arm clinging at the man. ]

Wha-- Cyno?!

[ certainly, tighnari can't really be too surprised by his companion's strength, the man is a force to be reckoned with and never to take lightly. but it surprises him that he decides to do it this way. there is definitely a complaint hanging on the tip of his tongue but, it's quickly gone as they step out onto the sands and already he can feel the heat bearing down on them.

he sighs heavily and buries his face against his shoulder, ears pinning back beneath the hoodie of the cloak, making use of the cover to hide himself from the sun. ]

... No, you're not wrong. [ even if he's a bit disgruntled to be a burden like this, but he knows cyno is right. ]

[ cyno knows tighnari well, knows that it's not too difficult to get past his pride by appealing to his sensible side; though he could be stubborn, tighnari still always seemed to know when not to push himself, and accept help freely offered. not only would it be faster to carry tighnari, it would also be safer, the less of a burden he put on that ankle, the better.

besides, cyno knows the way across these sands quite well by now. when tighnari's head rests against his shoulder, cyno smiles, hefting him a little more securely into his arms.

the walk didn't take terribly long, cyno moved quickly and efficiently, and soon enough the door slid open for him and he was stepping into his nice, cool, climate-controlled room again. the cool air against his skin felt good, and he sighed softly, then carefully set tighnari down on the sofa. ]

Let me get something to wrap that up with. Are you getting hungry?

[ fortunately cyno really does know him well enough, even if his pride and stubbornness did clash but... he has to be sensible with something like this. it's the same when he was struck by lightning in the clash with the traveler at his side - knowing he had to sit back and recover rather than try to push on.

he can't be foolish and make things worse for himself, or his companion. he emits a soft huff when cyno secures him more in his arms, but he does not complain and merely tries to chase off the heat of the sun by burying a bit more in the soothing warmth that is cyno, his scent filling his senses.

the tension leaves him once they return to the nice, cool room and his tail slips from the ends of the cloak with a light wag. whew, relief. once settled on the sofa, he starts to carefully maneuver himself, first by removing his shoes and socks to ease the pressure around his ankle. he's much better about hiding any sharpness of pain, only his ear flicking back as he hears him. ]

I am starting to get hungry, yes. Is there something in mind you want to eat?

[ cyno watches carefully and critically as tighnari slowly removes his shoes - he doesn't seem to be in much pain, but.. he could be stubbornly hiding it as well, cyno can't know for sure. what he does know is that that ankle needs some ice and some support.

so he moves to the kitchen area. thankfully, the entire space is very open plan, so he can still hear and see tighnari from the kitchen, glancing over his shoulder as he fills a small bag with ice. he brings it to tighnari, handing it down. ]

I was just going to warm up some leftovers, if that's all right with you. I had shakshouka last night, and there's plenty still left. I've also got some hummus and pita if you'd like something lighter.

[ hardly a substantial dinner, but he'll offer it all the same. ]

[ he takes the small bag, shifting to position himself to alleviate the pain while he applies it to his ankle. the only reaction that shows is the sudden flick of his tail before it settles against the sofa, though the end idly tapping against the furniture. he brings his other hand to map his ankle out- making his own diagnosis. as he said earlier, it isn't that serious. resting and keeping himself off his feet until tomorrow should be enough.

which means staying here tonight, which he's sure cyno won't mind - might even insist on it. but he's distracted briefly by the discussion over food. ]

That's perfectly fine by me. That sounds good.

[ he leaves the bag of ice settling on his ankle, reaching to pluck the basket from the floor that he settled earlier to place it on a nearby end table. even though his gaze lingers on the shrooms inside, he will have to leave his proper research for another time. ]

Do you mind if I stay here tonight? I should take it easy for the rest of the day and I don't want to trouble you helping me back to my own room.

I don't mind at all.

[ he was, in fact, going to insist indeed, so it's a good thing that tighnari brought it up on his own. cyno nods, then turns and pads back to the kitchen to begin heating up the leftover shakshouka. he'll go ahead and warm up some pita as well, to go with it.

while the food is warming, he leans onto the island counter. ]

What's the diagnosis?

Then if you don't mind, I can just take this sofa to sleep later.

[ tighnari passes him a glance, giving him a reassuring smile, until he tries to sink back onto the sofa to get a bit more comfortable. but he does tap his fingers on his hand... there isn't much to do but he wishes he could do something.

though, there's something quite homey just sitting here relaxing, with cyno heating up food for them both. his tail idly swishes side to side before he looks around the room to take in the surroundings once again. ]

It isn't sprained, so I should be better after some rest. I just need to make sure to not put any pressure on it.

[ cyno wants to protest tighnari's sleeping on the sofa, because he's a guest, and cyno is a self-sacrificing sort of man. he can take the sofa while tighnari has his bed!

but he knows that isn't an argument worth fighting, and one that he likely won't win anyway. he's already bent tighnari's will and tested his stubbornness enough tonight, he won't push any further, even if his expression says he's not pleased. he's frowning!! ]

.. all right.

[ it does feel nice and domestic, doesn't it? cyno could get used to this sort of thing, however dangerous it might be to allow himself to enjoy it too much. at any rate, the food is soon warmed, and they exist in a comfortable silence as cyno arranges two bowls and some glasses of water, carrying it all over on a tray and setting it on the low table by the sofa. ]

Your dinner, good sir.

[ ah, it's obvious to see cyno isn't pleased by that decision but also not daring to push any more on it. it's fine. tighnari will leave it at that. it's far too much trouble to push cyno out of his own bed and if tighnari is capable of falling asleep at a table during high research hours then he will be just fine with a sofa.

as cyno makes his way over with the tray, he starts to move himself to allow room beside him for the other man to sit. he can still keep the bag of ice tending to his ankle with no issue. and just to make it obvious- he pats the spot beside him, looking up at him. here, sit. ]

Thank you, General. How kind of you. [ peers at warm food... it smells wonderful. ] It looks good.

[ tighnari pats the space beside him, and so cyno sits, unloading the tray and handing tighnari his bowl, before taking up his own. the pita sits on a plate between them. without hesitating another moment, cyno begins to dig into his food, humming his satisfaction. ]

It's not bad.

[ he says after swallowing, and washing his mouthful down with some water. with that, they tuck into their meal together! ]

[ carefully he takes the bowl in hand, digging in himself into the food, warmed and satisfied himself by the taste and heat of it. his tail sweeps along the sofa behind him before plopping behind cyno with gentle taps. ]

It was delicious.

[ it doesn't take long for him to finish, setting the cleared bowl down back on the tray and taking a long drink of his water. though his gaze keeps flicking to the area until it draws back to cyno. ]

Maybe we'll save a proper tour for tomorrow.

Glad you liked it.

[ he's always subconsciously making things a bit less spicy, just in case tighnari comes by, and this meal was no exception; it's well-flavored, but not overwhelming, perfect for tighnari's sensitive palate.

with a sigh, he sits back against the sofa, loosely crossing his legs, and shooting tighnari a smile. ]

Yes, no walking around for you tonight. Tomorrow will do fine. Do you need more ice?

[ fortunate for that, because tighnari would certainly be whining about the spice levels if it was too much for his sensitive taste. truly unfortunate having his sensitivity. but it's just right and he knows it must be because cyno had given it consideration with tighnari in mind.

he carefully maneuvers to rest his ankle on the end of the sofa, settling the bag of ice over it before leaning back to rest against cyno's side. one ear flops as his head tilts, squishing it a little against white hair as he hums with thought. ]

No, I'm fine for now. Thank you.

[ when your best friend slash husband has specific tastes, you find yourself planning around them without even thinking about it tbh..

anyway, when tighnari leans against him, cyno smiles and hums, a bit of his usual tension easing away. he reaches for that tail, rubbing at it idly with one hand, smoothing his fingers across warm, dense fur. it feels nice beneath his palm. ]

Mm, okay. I'll get you something to sleep in in a minute.

[ not right now, tighnari is comfortable, so cyno can never move again. ]

[ that tail quivers briefly under that touch before it settles, curling just a little so it hooks around part of cyno's arm without tighnari realizing himself. ]

No rush. Unless you're all ready to sleep.

[ certainly he's pretty comfortable already, but he can let him go if he wants to prepare himself for rest already.

though the comfort of the food and warmth from his companion is enough to relax and put him close to drifting to sleep.. he can stay up a bit longer. ]

Mm, no, not yet. Soon.

[ he is a bit tired; it had been a long day of turning into jackals and foxes! but he'd had a little nap in that lovely forest, so he wasn't exhausted just yet. just comfortable, especially with tighnari so close - the fox had a way about him that always relaxed cyno, that recharged him after difficult days at work.

today hadn't been difficult, but tighnari is nevertheless his solace. he leans his head against tighnari's, humming. ]

It was a nice day. I enjoyed that forest.

It was really interesting, I had a good time too.

[ tighnari won't argue against not going to sleep, he's quite comfortable here, especially when cyno relaxes in return against him. moving on as he considers their experience in the forest. his tail sways slightly under fingers until he reaches for the basket to take a hold of one crystal.

he's leaning back right after, tilting his head to gently bump his against cyno's to meet his gaze. they're really close like this - but it isn't something tighnari minds, as if it's second nature to be in such close proximity with his companion. ]

Got any plans for these crystals?

Not sure yet. I'd like to study them a little more closely, but I'm not sure they'd survive the trip home.

[ he hasn't yet attempted to take anything from the hotel back to their home world - it should theoretically be fine, considering they're easily able to bring items from home here, but he's still yet to try.

cyno glances toward tighnari, and.. ah, yes, they sure are very close, close enough that cyno can see the lovely mixture where brown meets green in tighnari's eyes, close enough that he can smell his skin and fur and hair, close enough that he could -

ah, no, he clamps his thoughts down. ]

Perhaps there's a laboratory around here somewhere.

Ah, that definitely is worth testing to see. I'm sure there are potentially some things we may not be allowed - imagine returning back home with something from another world. But who knows?

[ though something like this he feels may just be safe to bring. he tilts the crystal between his fingers, allowing the lights to reflect off it with a curious gleam. though he meets cyno's scarlet red gaze again and offers a smile.

before he brings the crystal to hold by the side of his head, as if comparing the crystal with his eye color. it cannot beat the color of cyno's gaze but it certainly is interesting nevertheless. ]

A laboratory, huh... Worth exploring more floors to see. I wouldn't say it's impossible. If nothing else, I know there's a workshop on Kaveh's floor if you want to make something with them.

Who knows indeed. I'll try to take one back and see what happens.

[ he'd love to be able to study them more closely, see if they're composed of anything particularly interesting, or if they resonate with any elemental energy..

tighnari lifts the crystal by his head, and cyno's brows lift a little. he blinks, but stays still while tighnari does his comparison. the rainbow sheen of the crystal is quite different from the warm sunset of cyno's eyes. ]

A workshop, hmm? That might be nice. I could fashion you a crystal earring.

[ there's some fun in experimenting with what you could possibly bring back and find. so he offers a nod, agreeing with that notion. he chuckles at the expression that settles on cyno's face as he compares before he takes one of the man's hands to gently turn it over with palm facing up. only to plop the crystal in the center of that palm. ]

An earring?

[ ears twitch at the mention, giving it some thought over. cyno certainly could... granted, cyno could gift him anything and he would ultimately cherish it. his gaze flickers down to stare at the crystal's sheen before his tail flicks up. ]

Why don't we fashion a set? So we both have something.

[ oh.. matching earrings.. ///

cyno smiles warmly, and nods. ]

That's a good idea. I'll have to talk with Kaveh.

[ with the crystal in his palm now, cyno leans his elbows onto his knees and lifts the gem higher, turning it over slowly with his fingers, watching the way the light refracts off of it and through it. it's certainly quite beautiful, that can't be denied. ]

I could make something for him, too, in thanks. Maybe a bracelet.

[ matching... hehe

tighnari hums, tail swishing more now at the accepted idea. something for them to remember this whole experience by. ]

Kaveh is surely to have some good ideas himself. And I'm sure he'd appreciate a bracelet.

[ a bracelet though... hmm. he peers closer at cyno, watching the other lean over and examine the crystal. until he leans over himself, resting his chin on cyno's shoulder while his hand reaches out to gingerly touch one of his fingers with a tap. ]

Though, I think a ring would look nice for you too.

[ it's difficult, sometimes, to have tighnari so close; does he know what it does to cyno? how it makes him feel? in some ways it's almost a cruel tease, for how close he wants to be, like holding food just out of reach of a starving man.

and yet, he sinks into it so easily, wouldn't ever give it up. the closeness they have is something special, however painful it might be, and cyno is glad to take what little he can have when it comes to intimacy with his dearest friend. still, his face warms a little when tighnari's chin rests on his shoulder, the pad of one finger smoothing over cyno's knuckle. ]

A ring, hmm?

[ he surveys the crystal a little longer. it wouldn't be difficult to cut a small piece for a setting. ]

Well there's more than enough crystal to make all sorts of things.

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