IoQ: Nests Make for Better Rest

It was unusual for Thumbelina to sleep in, but since she had learned of her husband's passing she had hardly been sleeping at all. Her nightmares had been steadily gaining frequency since her arrival... but they had been almost every night for the last week. Last night though they didn't come... she supposed that meant that she had a great deal of faith in her grumpy male companion... He could keep her safe.

Waldor really really hadn't wanted to wake up and when he did he grumbled and started to shift then paused when he felt a weight next to him. Where was he-oh. He stilled and listened to his companions breathing to see if he'd managed to wake her in his morning grump fest.

The fairy mumbled a little in her sleep and snuggled closer, but she remained asleep.

Ah, good. Waldor shifted a tiny bit to wrap her up more in his wings and tilted his head to listen to the sounds of the house. He was not sure what time it was but worried to an extent that he had been in their house long enough for the little ones to have arisen.

Alas, his worries were founded as children could be heard moving through the house. It seemed they were all downstairs though, likely being cared for by the eldest one. Their mother though seemed quite content under the soft wing.

He squinted but Jonathan appeared to have things under wraps. Waldor stayed still as he debated whether or not he should attempt to get up and risk waking Thumbelina, after a moment he decided to try and slowly shifted to worm out of the bed.

There were a few more mumbled noises as Thumbelina started to wake up. They were quickly followed by a sleepily whispered. "Did you sleep well?"

He winced as she woke then petted her a bit with his wing. "Yes. Better than I have in some time. You?"

"Yeah... I didn't have any nightmares..."  She wasn't... really all the way awake yet... but she was starting to stretch with a light yawn.

That made the owl frown. "You have nightmares?" Bad dreams were his forte. You didn't end up a prophet of doom without having seen some truly awful things.

Thumbelina had moved into a more seated position, stretching her arms over her head. His comment made her freeze for a moment... She really hadn't meant to share that... but... ".. Yes... Well... sort of? They're more... memories...”

Waldor sat up with her, spreading his wings out a bit then curling them back around them some. He nodded in understanding and held out his hand. "My visions are as that. Though they are not my memories- but someone else’s."

"Hmm..." She leaned against him thoughtfully. "Tell me about them."

He frowned but continued. "They are the only reasons I understand what colors are, or how people look. But even those perceptions are skewed. Sometimes I have the sight of a being but others I am simply observing what is to come. Rarely I can look around, take note of things, but often it is as though I am just a visitor and must see what I am expected to see."

Thumbelina carefully listened to his description, nodding slightly. ".. So you don't have any control over what you see? I remember... you said before that you had seen my children and I... what had we been doing? Or is it... more fuzzy and hard to make out things?"

"Not often. I can try to focus on a subject but it can be difficult." He shrugged with significantly less pain than the night before. "It was an outing of some kind. You were laughing and the children were playing."

"So you got to see them behaving." She laughed lightly.  To be fair 2 of her original 3 were generally well behaved... "Have you ever seen anything... with your species?" She had heard him before say that he was very young when he was taken from his family... but maybe he'd had luck to see things with his own kind. He seemed to have lots of race based opinions.

Sadness flickered across his features but he quickly masked it with his usual dour expression. "Yes. I was often sought out on ways to eradicate my people." He paused then whispered to her, as though what he was saying was a great secret. "I told my captors that it was forbidden to use my sight against my people....I lied." That lie had hurt him more than anything. It was against ever bit of training he had ever had to lie about what he had seen but he refused to allow the people that had captured him to use him as a weapon against the others.

Thumbelina gasped slightly as he mentioned genocide. She took one of his hands gently squeezing it as a sort of comforting... though he may not have required it. "I completely understand... for what it's worth... I think you did the right thing. From my time spent with you... I strongly doubt that any problems with your people couldn't have been handled in a civil manner. I am so sorry you had to be put in such a situation though."

He squeezed her hand gently and remained silent, not trusting himself to speak. The visions he'd had of his people were bittersweet to him. Though he valued the things he'd learned greatly he was reminded every time that he was no longer part of them and knew with certainty that he would never be again.

She could see the sadness in him and her just... The motherly desire in her to comfort took over. Her arms wrapped around him in a tender fashion and she quietly stroked his hair. She hadn't meant to bring up sad memories.

Waldor leaned into her and sighed. "I...am sorry. I do not tend to think upon these things and I did not mean to ruin your morning."

"Shh, you could never ruin my morning." She continued to stroke his hair lovingly in an attempt to soothe his troubled heart. Maybe that's what had drawn her to become so close to the bird... though how she could help... she did not know. "You had said you would always be there to listen to my worries... and stayed by my side when my heart cried... do not think I would do any less for you... I'm always here if you want to talk...”

The corners of his mouth twitched and he nodded his thanks.

Thumbelina continued to hold him and stroke his hair soothingly. She assumed that he would let her know when he was done being comforted.

Waldor chirped softly. He was reminded by the moment of his mother and was selfish enough to snuggle into the petting for a bit longer before he finally straightened. "Thank you, Belina."

Thumbelina smiled softly, her hands returned to resting on her lap. "I'm glad you don't mind my touching you anymore."

"I trust you."

While it was usually rather hard to get the fairy to blush that brought an instant color and warmth to her cheeks. He had never seemed like the type to trust easily... so she hadn't expected it. "I'm... Flattered..." She whispered softly adding in an even lower volume. "... I trust you too... Very very much...”

He smiled softly and nodded. "I am glad." He hadn't intended to unsettle her nor did he really think the comment would have. Waldor was simply being honest. He wasn't given to trusting so having come to trust Thumbelina he did not for an instant think he should hesitate in telling her, the explanation making complete sense to him. The owl shifted some and motioned to the door. "I should tell you that your children are awake. I fear we have overslept a tiny bit. However I believe your eldest is tending them."

"Yes... he does that... If anything had happened he would have come up to wake me... so everything should be fine." While she hadn't really minded spending so much time in bed... she realized that she may have been keeping her companion too long. "Oh, if I've been keeping you too long... You're welcome to leave... I just enjoy your company."

Waldor snorted and patted her reassuringly. "I am fine. I simply did not want you to become worried or crowded."

"I think it would be fine if I remained a bit longer..." Thumbelina straightened in her seated position, hands on her lap. "I feel like I've spent much of the morning just asking things about you... if there is anything you'd like to know about me... You're welcome to ask."

Remembering the last time he'd asked her questions Waldor shook his head. "Not at the moment. What I know is that you are kind of heart and noble or spirit and that you are my friend. That is all I need to know and unless you choose to tell me of things I will not ask anything further."

"I don't think I'm all that special... but thank you for holding me in such high regard." Thumbelina sighed, allowing herself to fall back down on the bed next to him. It was always encouraging when others spoke highly of her... it helped her to also think better of herself.

Waldor tsked and batted her playfully with his wing. "If you cannot hold yourself in high regard then you must only ask me and I will profess praises of you until you grow weary of hearing them~" Was he teasing? Yes. Yes he was.

"Pfft~" Thumbelina pushed at the wing he batted her with. "How charming of you." She laughed lightly then remembered something. She rolled to face him. "Oh! I had a question for you."

He chuckled. "You are welcome." His brows went up as he waited for her to ask.

"My dog Lily just had puppies; they're not quite old enough to leave their mother yet... but... I was thinking of training one of them to be a seeing eye dog for you... to help maybe... would that be something you'd like?" She honestly was unsure... he seemed to both like and dislike creatures...

"Seeing...eye dog?" He had honestly never heard of such a thing before.

"A dog, trained to walk ahead of you, signal where things are and bring you things on command... They can also do simple tasks like turning on lights and such...” Thumbelina smiled. "I read that they were helpful for those who are blind... and one of the pups seems acceptionally bright... so I think I could train her... I was going to surprise you... but it would be better to ask...”

"Hmmm." The concept was interesting to him but he wasn't sure how Argos would handle being around a small creature. "It might be helpful for guidance, but I worry that my tiger may not ah...play well with such a small animal."

"Oh... How is your tiger going to handle the sprite?" Speaking of small creatures...

"If she doesn't maul it in seconds I will be very surprised. Though perhaps that it smells of me may save it..." That was a very good question. He'd have to make sure to sneak the sprite in at first so the tiger didn't try to eat it.

"Well... I could always show you the puppy when we get up. She's a real sweet heart."

Show. Show him the puppy. Waldor barely managed not to snicker as he nodded to Thumby. "Please."

Thumbelina noticed his amusement and bumped him lightly with her shoulder. "You know what I meant."

He laughed and hid his face in his wing to smother the sound. "I did, I cannot help but tease about such things though~"

Gently she tried to guide the wing from covering his face as a grin started to spread across her face. "Aww~ Why are you hiding your laugh~" The smile grew more and she giggled lightly. "I bet your laugh is adorable~"

He wrinkled his nose at her but smiled faintly all the same. "I am sparing you the horror of it."

She scooted closer and whispered to him. "I'm not afraid~"

That made him snort then snicker and he tried to hide his face again as he started laughing in earnest. The woman next to him was far too silly.

She tried to keep him from covering his face again, though he as far stronger than her... if he really wished to hide himself she would not have the ability to stop him. Even so, her smile grew at his laughter. "Just as I thought. You have a wonderful laugh that spreads happiness to those near." She continued grinning. It was nice seeing him relaxed like this.

His wings shook as he laughed and he covered his face with his hands rather than shove it into his wing. After a moment he turned to her some, humor written all over his face. "And here I thought it was your laugh that spread so."

"Nope!" She kept smiling a light laugh escaping her. "That is definitely your special ability."

He shook his head, slowly ceasing to laugh but still happy. "Then I must take care to use it cautiously lest it get become a target of great evil."

She giggled lightly at his joke. "It's nice seeing you so happy. You should stay over more often." Thumbelina stretched, preparing her reluctant self to get out of bed. The house had quieted since they had been laughing. The children must have gone somewhere. Probably playing outside, after all it was still summer.

Waldor blinked slowly and smiled some as he waited for her to finish out of the bed so he could follow her. He shifted his wings a little once he was out of the bed and nodded to her. "If you would like. It is pleasant being here."

"Nothing would make me happier. I almost felt like one of my children passing out in a bed-fort... I enjoyed it immensely." Thumbelina also just liked cuddling but she wasn't particularly aware of that being anything special. “One sec...” There was the sound of a light door opening followed by an abundance of shuffling fabric, some of which hit the floor. She had already hugged him naked and he was blind, so she didn't see any problem changing real quick. The light pattering of her feet signaled movement as she went over to where the lovely armor had been dropped. Then she slipped it on over her fresh dress, added the bracer to one arm and the two bangles to the other. Her thought was that the leather would make some noise when she moved if he needed both hands, but having both bangles on the hand she usually held his with would make it easier for him to 'see' when she was holding a hand out.

Waldor chuckled softly and nodded, content to wait for her. He pulled a wayward feather off one of his wings and turned the thing over in his hands as he listened to her move about.

When she walked back over, the bangles 'chinged' against each other a bit. "Are you losing feathers?" Her question did have a mild concern to it... she worried he may not be eatting enough nutrients...

That brought another chirp of laughter from him and he reached out to touch her face-a precaution as he tucked the feather into her hair. "Just as humans shed their skin and hair, I shed feathers. It will grow back, likely has already started to. Come the colder months I will bulk up and turn into an owl pincushion with all the extra feathers I will have."

"Oh." She looked at the feather smiling slightly. "Does that mean I can just snuggle up and hide in your wings all winter? It is entirely my least favorite season."

Why did that sound odd to him? Waldor paused as he tried to understand why part of his conscience was ringing bells but ignored it since he fully believed Thumbelina wouldn't hurt him. He chuckled softly and shrugged. "If you can put up with the tickle of the feathers I do not mind your company at night. I take it you do not get more coverage then for winter?" Some species didn't, which he had always thought was strange but then again so few species had wings and he felt that queer as well.

"I don't... I also got stranded in the wilderness once and almost froze to death." Such events also spiraled into the cause of her first marriage... She shook the negativity from herself. "But that was many many years ago now." Her smile returned softly as she added. "I don't think your feathers tickle, I think they're wonderfully soft."

"Ah. Well, you would not freeze by me, I assure you. Overheat maybe, but not freeze." Waldor rubbed the bridge of his nose to hide another smile. "Thank you. I try to tend to them so they do not become jagged. It is good to hear my efforts are not in vain."

"How does one tend to feathers?" Thumbelina offered her hand, the bangles jiggling lightly as she did. "If there is ever any way I could assist you just let me know... I would assume it's hard to reach the ones on your back." She intended to mention that she was going to take him to the puppies... but curiosity overtook her.

Waldor took her hand gently then pulled one of his wings around that she could see. "I have to keep them clean, dirt will make them become brittle as will water or really anything that coats them. Because they are layered I have to go through them and make sure they are lying correctly and undamaged. Dead feathers can damage others so they have to be removed too. It is...tedious, but I suppose it is similar to the way others have to groom themselves. Like...brushing ones hair?" He left out that the feathers on his back drove him nuts and that his method of cleaning them was to usually rake them with his talons but she didn't necessarily need to know he did that-

"That is definitely more work than I bother with... I just braid my hair and ignore it for the most part... But the offer remains. If you ever would like help with your back or something... I would have no problem joining you at the river to help." Thumbelina began leading down stairs and past the kitchen into an area she kept as a workshop. In a room just off of it her dog Lily was snuggled up with her little litter. Every so often there would be a little whimper or noise from one of the puppies. She knelt down, giving her mama dog a couple pets.

"I may take you up on it." Ew stairs. Waldor followed her, slowing a bit on the stairs but moving with her none the less. He was careful when he heard the puppies moving. He didn't want to frighten the things and he was more than sure they weren't used to large predatory birds.

Carefully, Thumbelina released his hand so that she could pick up a specific puppy. Her bracelets jingled a bit as she brought the puppy up. "Hold your hands out." The puppy remained very quiet in her hands as the other pups continued making little noises.

He cupped his hands, unsure of how small this creature was, and waited. He wasn't sure if he approved or was worried about the pups silence-then decided that silence was better even if it meant the beast was terrified of him. Like Argos, he was sure the pup would learn in time that Waldor was outwardly mean but all too often pleasant to those beings he valued.

Well, it WAS a corgi puppy so it was not all that large currently the little thing fit easily in one of his hands. Once placed in his hand the small thing smelled him and gave a small lick before snuggling up in his hand.

"As I have been observing them, she has appeared to be the smartest of the litter, sometimes she gets into things or uses her surroundings to her advantage... they don't travel from mom much yet.. But I think in about a week she'll be ready to leave her mom...”

"It's....tiny. Are you sure this is a dog?" His hand was bigger than this thing. Even as a newborn shouldn't be larger? Waldor lifted the pup a bit higher and ever so carefully ran his fingers over it. Tiny thing, but unafraid. That was a good sign at the very least.

"Ah... Well it is a corgi." She laughed a bit, thinking of how corgis were told to be the mounts of fairies... they were also the only sorts of dogs she had ever owned.

A soft amused sound left him as the pup nuzzled into his hands. "I suppose. My cat is a tiger. Somehow I think I have gotten this 'pet' situation mixed up." He held the puppy back out to her, not wanting to keep it from it's mother for too long.

Thumbelina returned the little girl to her mother. "I don't think it matters. I'm sure your Tiger isn't all bite."

"Oh. Of course not. She also likes to sleep all over my workspace so that everything stinks of her."

"Maybe someday I'll get to meet her then. I've never actually seen a tiger up close." She gave the mother one last pet before returning to her feet. "Is there anything you need to do today? Or anything you could use help with? I feel like I may have wasted your whole day with little regard for your plans.."

He started to say no then thought better of it. "I may need more silk. Would I be able to commission some from you on a semi regular basis? I found it to be very helpful with my workings once it was treated." He completely ignored the statement that she might have been wasting his time because it was absurd to him.

"Well I don't really mind crafting if for you, though if you do think you'll be needed it fairly often... Perhaps we should go to the light lagoon and tame you a moth? If you had your own to harvest the raw silk from I would be more than happy to spin and weave it for you."

Another creature to follow him around… Waldor sighed but there was a hint of a smile on his face. "Yes. That would be helpful."

"Would you like to do that now?" Thumbelina watched his expressions, mildly amused by them. "You can keep them in my barn if that helps."

A relieved sigh left him. "Yes, that would be very helpful."

Thumbelina assumed that his yes had been in response to her asking if they should go collect more puff moths. Careful of the talons, she took his hand in her bangled one. "The area where I had found mine was really lovely. I went swimming there with Matches." She began to lead him out of the house. In retrospect he likely didn't need to hold her hand... she just wanted to.

Honestly he didn't even mind holding her hand at this point and simply allowed her to lead him out. "Mmm. And some grumpy man told you off? I vaguely remember that being said during her rambling."